UP Governor writes to CM against Azam Khan's comments

Pratapgarh: Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik has written a letter to Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav in connection with the use of alleged unparliamentary remarks by senior minister Azam Khan against him.

"I have written a letter to the chief minister with reference to the unparliamentary comments of the parliamentary affairs minister Azam Khan...Akhilesh Yadav is presently on foreign trip. I will talk to him once he comes back," Naik told reporters here.

In a CD handed over by the Assembly Speaker in connection with the matter, out of the 60 sentences of Khan, 20 have "unparliamentary comments", although the Speaker says there is nothing undignified in it, the Governor said, adding a meeting with the Speaker has been fixed for April 9.

Khan has been engaged in a no-holds-barred war of words with Naik for quite some time, with the minister accusing the Governor of being a "kar sevak" and "communally vitiating" the atmosphere in Uttar Pradesh at the "behest" of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre.

In a stinging remark in the Assembly, Khan had accused the Governor of stalling several bills by not giving his assent and alleged it was giving an impression he was working under the "influence of a party".

On the raging controversy over chanting of "Bharat mata ki jai", Naik said a handful of people are raking it up.

"In 1950, Jana Gana Mana was made the National Anthem... there had been a tradition of singing the National Song and the Anthem in Parliament...Very few people are raking up such issues...Everyone has the freedom to speak in democracy," he said.

Earlier addressing a function here, he said, besides having academic knowledge, students should have knowledge of the country.

He said those not chanting 'Bharat Mata ki jai" were dumb.