TOI
Lucknow, Apr 4: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Saturday hit out at Pilibhit MP Maneka Gandhi for politicising the Varun Gandhi row.
In a snub to Maneka Gandhi, Mayawati said if the BJP MP knew a mother's pain, she would not have endorsed the hate speeches of her son Varun Gandhi for which he has been booked under NSA, PTI reported.
Hitting back at Maneka, who had said that the UP Chief Minister did not understand a mother's pain since she was not one, Mayawati said that if she was a good mother she would have inculcated the right values in Varun.
"Had Maneka inculcated good values to her son (Varun) he would not have to spent night in the jail. She must apologise not only to me but to the entire nation for her shameful and unfortunate comments", Mayawati told reporters.
Justifying the action of Pilibhit district administration to charge Varun under NSA, Mayawati said that in case riots had erupted, thousands of mothers would have rendered childless.
Maneka should understand pain of thousands of mothers, she said.
"Maneka kewal ek bete ka dard samajhti hain but main karodo beton ka dard samajhti hun" (Maneka only understands the pain of one son but I feel pain of crores of sons), Mayawati said at a hurriedly called press conference.
Maneka had on Friday attacked Mayawati for targeting her son and attributed political motive behind the move to keep him in jail during election time, PTI says.
"Ma ka dard samajhne ke liye ma hona zaruri nahi hai. Mother Teresa bhi ma nahi thi lekin unhone pyar pure vishwa ki janta ko diya". (It is not necessary to be a mother to understand her pain. Mother Teresa was not a mother but she bestowed her love on the people of the entire world)," Mayawati said.
The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister said that no one would be allowed to vitiate law and order situation of the state irrespective of their parties and position.
29-year-old Varun was held under NSA in connection with his hate speeches in Pilibhit last month.
Varun had subsequently surrendered before a local court in Pilibhit and was sent to the district jail there. He was later shifted to Etah jail.
After initial dithering, the state government on Friday had allowed Pilibhit MP Maneka Gandhi to meet her son and incarcerated BJP LS candidate from Pilibhit Varun Gandhi in Etah district jail. She is expected to call on Varun on Saturday.
It all began on Friday morning when Maneka Gandhi reportedly informed the Etah district administration about her plans to visit Varun in jail. Her request, however, was turned down by the jail authorities who cited provisions of the Jail Manual and the National Security Act under which Varun has been detained.
As per the Manual and the Act, any detenue is allowed only two meetings with the outsiders per week. Any further meeting by anyone is subject to an official written clearance from the office of the DM concerned. As Varun has already had his quota of meetings, including ones with his mother, aunt and some senior BJP leaders including Venkaiah Naidu, the jail authorities decided to decline Maneka’s request on Friday morning.
However, the issue gained momentum when Maneka, in a statement to a news channel called the restriction as ‘‘frivolous’’ and ‘‘result of political vendetta’’.
In no mood to grant the saffronites a political mileage, the state government on Friday evening issued a written clarification stating that no restrictions whatsoever have been imposed on Maneka meeting her son.
The communique also stated that the Etah DM has been entrusted with the authority of granting permission to the visitors according to his discretion.
Shortly after the order was issued, the office of Etah DM Gaurav Dayal informed Maneka that she may meet Varun on Saturday. Dayal’s office also confirmed to TOI that Maneka was slated to visit Varun on Saturday.