RANCHI: Amid the celebrations of Baba Saheb Bhimrao Ambedkar's 135th birth anniversary, Minority Affairs Minister Hafizul Hasan’s statement that ‘Sharia’ is above the constitution has sparked a row among the political circles in Jharkhand.
Leader of Opposition, Babulal Marandi, made a scathing attack on the Minister, demanding his immediate dismissal from the cabinet over his controversial remarks prioritising Sharia law above the Indian Constitution.
Notably, talking to a News Channel, Jharkhand's Minority Welfare Minister Hafizul Hasan said, “For me, Sharia is more important. We keep the Quran in our chest and the Constitution in our hands... Muslims walk with the Quran in their chest, and the Constitution in their hands. Okay! So we will first hold the Sharia and then the Constitution.”
Jharkhand BJP also opposed his statement by posting on X, saying, “The doors of Pakistan and Bangladesh are open for those who have Sharia in their hearts. India will run only on the constitution of Baba Saheb Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar and will remain supreme," it said.
Expressing his anguish, Marandi said that such a statement was made on the birth anniversary of Dr B.R. Ambedkar, the architect of the Indian Constitution. “This is not just an anti-constitutional remark—it is an anti-national act,” declared Marandi.
A state minister holding a constitutional post has insulted both the Constitution and Baba Saheb Ambedkar, which cannot be pardoned, he added.
According to Marandi, at the time of elections, Hafizul Hasan folded his hands and asked for votes from the poor, Dalits and tribals, and now he is trying to implement an Islamic agenda.
Marandi accused the INDI alliance of indulging in vote-bank politics at the cost of national values. “They want to run this country not by the Constitution, but by Sharia law,” alleged Marandi, further adding that incidents of stone-pelting and communal tension during Hindu festivals are the result of the state’s “appeasement-driven governance.
Marandi said that this is the real character of the INDIA bloc, which has been revealed through the words of Hafizul Hasan. He also asked the Congress Party and JMM to tell whether the party agrees or disagrees with the statement of Hafizul Hasan.
“If Hafizul Hasan is not dismissed from the cabinet, then it will be considered that the people of the INDI alliance agree with the statement of Minister Hafizul Hasan. And they only pretend to follow the Constitution,” said Marnadi.
He also clarified that the issue will be taken to the people across Jharkhand, launching statewide protests and campaigns. Meanwhile, JMM sidelined itself from the statement made by its Minister calling it as his personal statement. “Whatever Minister Hafizul Hasan has said is his personal statement,” said JMM General Secretary and Spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya.