PATNA: Controversial Bihar MP Pappu Yadav, known for making provocative public statements, has once again stirred a hornet’s nest by saying at a public meeting that he has never recited the national anthem and will never do so because it was written in praise for a British king visiting colonised India.
The MP from Madhepura, who is the convener of his one-year-old party, Jan Adhikar Party (JAP), also asked the audience in his speech to do the same.
The statements have drawn flak from various political parties, who have demanded action against him as per law. Bihar’s main Opposition party BJP on Tuesday threatened to approach court to seek action against Yadav.
“The adhinayak (leader) and bhagya-vidhata (shaper of destiny) that this poem mentions refers to King George V of the United Kingdom. He, of course, cannot be India’s leader and cannot shape the country’s destiny. This is why I have never recited Jana Gana Mana, the national anthem, and I will never sing it,” said Yadav in his address to a gathering at Chakamaran near Hajipur on Sunday.
“When I understand something convincingly, nobody can change my thoughts on it, not even the Constitution, though I am a rule-abiding citizen. I cannot respect anything that snatches our freedom of
expression. This is why I ask you all to become rebels so as to bring about change,” said Yadav, who was elected to Lok Sabha on an RJD ticket in 2014 by beating JD(U) stalwart Sharad Yadav but was expelled from RJD in May 2015 for anti-party activities.
Even as Yadav led hundreds of his supporters to force trains to stop at Patna’s Rajendranagar railway station on Tuesday in protest against demonetisation, leaders of several parties spoke against his stand on the national anthem.
“Pappu Yadav has proved by his statement that he has little respect for India, the Indian national flag, the national anthem and the Constitution. The Bihar government should take note of his words and initiate action against him. If the government keeps quiet, we will approach the court,” said Sanjay Mayukh,
vice-president of state BJP.
JD(U) spokesperson Neeraj Kumar said: “He (Yadav) is a criminal-turned-politician. All the knowledge that he has today he learnt while in Tihar Jail. The people do not take him seriously. The less we speak about him, the better,” said Kumar. RJD leader and MLA Bhai Birendra also condemned Yadav, dubbing his comments on the national anthem as “wayward and dangerous”.