After BJP Minister Vijay Shah referred to Colonel Sofiya Qureshi as a “sister of terrorists”, the Madhya Pradesh High Court took suo motu cognisance of the matter and directed the police to register an FIR against him under sections 152, 196 of the BNS. The court further stated that failure to file the FIR by today evening (May 14) would be treated as contempt of court, and the Director General of Police (DGP) would face proceedings accordingly.

“The first offence made against the minister is section 152 of the BNS. The second section under which the minister prima facie is bound to be tried is under section 196 of the BNS, which is promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc. and doing such acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony,” observed the bench of Justice Atul Sreedharan and Justice Anuradha Shukla.

The high court noted, “In the section 196, subsection 1 clause B specifically criminalises an act which is prejudicial to maintenance of harmony between different religions, racial, language, etc. or racial groups or castes or communities and which disturbs or is likely to disturb public tranquility.”

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“The prime facie in this section would be applicable as Sophia Qureshi is an adherent of the Islam, of the Muslim faith and deriding her by referring to her as the ‘sister of terrorists’,” it further observed.

What has the BJP minister said?

Madhya Pradesh Tribal Minister Kunwar Vijay Shah irked people after he tagged Col Qureshi as ‘sister of terrorists’. For those unaware, Col Qureshi was part of regular MEA media briefings after India launched Operation Sindoor to avenge the Pahalgam terror attack, alongside Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh. 

In the now-viral video, MP Minister says from the stage, “Jinhone humari betiyon ke sindoor ujade the… humne unhi ki behen bhej kar ke unki aisi ki taisi karwayi [Those who wiped the vermilion off our daughters’ forehead… we sent their sister to teach them a lesson].” His remark was met with a thunderous round of applause. 

He didn’t stop here. He went on to say, “Unhone kapde utar utar ke hamare hinduon ko mara. Aur Modi ji ne unki behen ko unki aisi ki taisi karne bheja… [They undressed Hindus and killed them, and Modi ji sent their sister to return the favour].”

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“Ab Modi ji kapde to utar nahi sakte the, islie unke samaj ki behen ko hi bheja ki tumne agar hamari behno ko vidhwa kia hai, to tumhare samaj ki behen aa kar, tumhe nanga karegi [Modi ji couldn’t remove their clothes himself, so he sent a woman from their community with a clear message that if you have made our women widows, then a woman from your community will come and give it back to you].”

He went on to say, “Desh ka samman, man samman aur hamari behnon ka suhag ka badla tumhari jati ki, samaj ki behno ko Pakistan bhej kar agar koi le sakta hai… Aur unhone kaha tha, ghar me ghus karke marunga, ghar me ghus ke mara… [The honour of the country, the dignity of our people, and the revenge for the loss of our women’s husbands can only be taken by sending the women of your caste, your community, to Pakistan… And he (Modi) had said, ‘I will enter their home and kill you [in reference to terrorists],’ and he did just that – entered their home and killed them…”

As per reports, Shah was speaking at an event in Dr Ambedkar Nagar, where several prominent BJP leaders were on stage, including Union Minister of State for Women and Child Development Savitri Thakur.

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Kunwar Vijay Shah apologises

Shah later apologised for his remarks, stating that Col Qureshi means more to him than his real sister.

“…Do not see my speech in a different context. I want to tell people that my speech is not in that context. They are our sisters, and they have taken revenge with great strength along with the armed forces,” Shah said just a day after receiving flak for his objectionable remarks against Colonel Sofiya Qureshi in a speech. 

He added, “…Colonel Sofiya Qureshi is more than a real sister for me, who took revenge from them…I neither had the will nor the desire (to hurt someone)…If anyone felt bad about what I said, I apologise from the bottom of my heart….”

This, however, is not the first time that Shah has made controversial remarks, particularly against women. In 2013, he was sacked for his loose remarks on then Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. 

“Bhabhi ji chalo. Bhai-sahab ke saath to roz jaate ho, kabhi dewaron ke saath chalo. Maine bhabhi ki taraf dekha…kya bolti? [Bhabhiji, why don’t we go out sometime? You go out with bhai-sahab every day, once in a while, accompany the brother-in-law too].”