'Shabana Azami, Javed Akhtar, Naseeruddin Shah sleeper cells of Tukde-Tukde gang': MP minister Narottam Mishra

Senior BJP leader and Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Narottam Mishra on Saturday termed Bollywood personalities Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah and Javed Akhtar as ‘agents and sleeper cells of Tukde-Tukde gang’. 

Mishra made the controversial remark while reacting to Shabana Azami’s comment questioning the release of 11 persons convicted for the gang-rape of Bilkis Bano during the Gujarat riots in 2002.

Talking to mediapersons in Bhopal, Mishra said these people don’t utter even a single word when crimes are committed in a non-BJP state.

"Why these people were silent when a minor girl was killed in Jharkhand, why did not they say a single word on the Udaipur murder? Because they see crime in only in BJP-ruled states. These people are agents and sleeper cell of Tukde-Tukde gang," Mishra said.

"These are the same people who had initiated award-wapsi," Mishra added.

शबाना आजमी‌, नसीरुद्दीन शाह जैसे लोग टुकड़े-टुकड़े गैंग के स्लीपर सेल के एजेंट है जो सिर्फ भाजपा शासित राज्यों में हुई घटनाओं पर ही हल्ला मचाते हैं, जबकि कांग्रेस शासित राजस्थान और झारखंड जैसे राज्यों में हो रही घटनाओं पर मौन रहते हैं। अब ऐसे लोगों की कलई खुल चुकी हैं। pic.twitter.com/fPpaTLKbzx

— Dr Narottam Mishra (@drnarottammisra) September 2, 2022

Talking to a private news channel on Thursday, Shabana Azmi had said, "Bilkis Bano didn`t lose courage. She fought all the way. She got these people convicted and, like her husband says, just when she was about to bring her life together, this great travesty of justice happened."

The 11 men, who were sentenced to life in connection with the gang-rape of Bilkis Bano and murder of seven members of her family, walked out of the Godhra sub-jail on August 15 after the Gujarat government allowed their release under its remission policy.

Amid widespread criticism of the Gujarat government over the release of convicts, the Madhya Pradesh is set to come up with a new policy which provides for a life sentence till death for those held guilty for offences like gangrape and terrorist acts. Convicts in such cases will not be released after the completion of 14 years in jail which is the minimum term of life sentence.

The proposed policy was reviewed by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan at a meeting with home minister Narottam Mishra, chief secretary Iqbal Singh Bains and additional chief secretary (home) Dr Rajesh Rajora on Thursday evening.