MUMBAI: All India Majlis-E-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief and Lok Sabha MP Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday said a hijab-clad woman would one day become India’s prime minister as the Constitution accords equal status to every citizen, unlike in Pakistan where members of only one religion can occupy the top constitutional posts.
The statement drew a sharp response from the BJP, which called it “half truth” and “irresponsible”, saying many Muslim women opposed to the practice of wearing hijab.
Owaisi was addressing an election rally in Maharashtra ahead of the Solapur Municipal Corporations elections set to be held on January 15. “The Constitution of Pakistan says that only a person belonging to one religion can become the country’s prime minister or the president. But the Constitution written by Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar, clearly states that any citizen can become the prime minister, the chief minister of a state or even a mayor,” he said.
“By the grace of the Almighty, the day will come, when neither I nor the present generation will be around, but a daughter wearing a hijab would become the prime minister of India,” AIMIM chief said.
The BJP countered his statement, saying Muslim women were against wearing hijab and women in Iran and other Islamic countries were protesting against it.