BAREILLY: Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan, recently convicted of a hate speech case, which subsequently led to him losing his membership in the assembly, as he spoke at a UP civic polls rally in Rampur, he asked his supporters if they want him and his family killed in the same way as gangster turned politician Atiq Ahmed. “That’s the only thing left now,” he joked.
The veteran politician, in an emotional speech before a large crowd on Friday night, said, “People of Rampur, what do you want from me, my children, my family? Do you want someone to come and shoot us in the head? This is the only thing left… Save the country, save the law, you don’t have to offer anything, you just have to motivate yourself. Try to move forward instead of stepping back.”
He further said: ‘If you are stopped, then sit down then and say you won’t step back and cast your vote as it is your basic right. This right has been snatched away twice and if snatched a third time then remember that you may lose the right to breathe… The whole country is under contract…”
Azam had been charged with more than 90 criminal cases after the BJP came to power in 2017 and spent more than two years in prison. He was absent from election rallies until Friday as he was being treated for a prolonged illness in Delhi. He campaigned for SP candidate Fatima Zabi who is contesting the post of president of Rampur nagar palika parish.
Azam’s son Abdullah Azam was also disqualified from the Suar assembly after his conviction in another case. In a recent demonstration, CM Yogi Adityanath had said, “We have spun the reels in such a way that now you see criminals and mafia elements begging for their lives…”
The veteran politician, in an emotional speech before a large crowd on Friday night, said, “People of Rampur, what do you want from me, my children, my family? Do you want someone to come and shoot us in the head? This is the only thing left… Save the country, save the law, you don’t have to offer anything, you just have to motivate yourself. Try to move forward instead of stepping back.”
He further said: ‘If you are stopped, then sit down then and say you won’t step back and cast your vote as it is your basic right. This right has been snatched away twice and if snatched a third time then remember that you may lose the right to breathe… The whole country is under contract…”
Azam had been charged with more than 90 criminal cases after the BJP came to power in 2017 and spent more than two years in prison. He was absent from election rallies until Friday as he was being treated for a prolonged illness in Delhi. He campaigned for SP candidate Fatima Zabi who is contesting the post of president of Rampur nagar palika parish.
Azam’s son Abdullah Azam was also disqualified from the Suar assembly after his conviction in another case. In a recent demonstration, CM Yogi Adityanath had said, “We have spun the reels in such a way that now you see criminals and mafia elements begging for their lives…”
