Last Updated:
Shah equated Col Qureshi’s role in the military with a communal and gendered insult during a public speech, prompting severe criticism from opposition parties and military veterans
BJP leader Kunwar Vijay Shah’s remarks on Colonel Sofiya Qureshi sparked backlash from Congress. (PTI/X)
After receiving widespread criticism over his indecent remarks against Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, Madhya Pradesh minister Vijay Shah tendered an apology on Tuesday evening.
Shah, BJP leader and Tribal Welfare Minister equated Col Qureshi’s role in the military with a communal and gendered insult during a public speech, prompting severe criticism from opposition parties and military veterans.
Following his remarks, the Congress party demanded his immediate removal from the state cabinet. However, Shah has since attempted to pacify the situation by offering multiple apologies.
“Sister Sofiya has brought glory to India by rising above caste and religion. She is more respected than our own sister. I salute her for her service to the nation. We cannot even think of insulting her in our dreams. Still, if my words have hurt society and religion, then I am ready to apologise ten times,” he said.
Row Over MP Minister’s Remarks
A massive row was triggered after Shah drew a connection between the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, which left 26 people dead, and Operation Sindoor. Referring to Col Qureshi, the minister claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi sent “a sister from their (the terrorists’) community” in an Indian Air Force aircraft to “strip them of their pride” and “teach them a lesson.”
“Those people (terrorists) who had wiped out the sindoor of our sisters in the Pahalgam terror attack…We avenged these ‘kate-pite’ people by sending their sister to destroy them,” he said, adding, “They (terrorists) killed our Hindu brothers by making them remove their clothes. PM Modi ji responded by sending their (terrorists’) sister in an Army plane to strike them in their houses.”
A video of the minister went viral on social media, drawing widespread criticism. Col Qureshi, alongside Wing Commander Vyomika Singh and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, has been the face of official press briefings detailing Operation Sindoor.
Congress Hits Out At Minister, Urges PM Modi To Sack Him
Slamming Shah for his remarks, the Congress party termed his comments as “derogatory, communal and shameful.” Party president Mallikarjun Kharge also issued a statement and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to sack him immediately.
“A minister of the BJP government of Madhya Pradesh has made a very derogatory, shameful and cheap remark about our brave daughter Colonel Sofia Qureshi. The terrorists of Pahalgam wanted to divide the country, but the country was united during the entire ‘Operation Sindoor’ to give a befitting reply to the terrorists,” Kharge wrote in a post on X.
- Location :
Bhopal, India, India
- First Published:
