A row has broken out over Zameer Ahmed Khan's 'Kaalia' comment to HD Kumaraswamy
Bangalore:
Amid the massive row over his alleged racist remark against Union Minister HD Kumaraswamy, Karnataka Minister of State Zameer Ahmed Khan has said that he called the JDS leader “Kaalia” out of endearment and that he was ready to apologize if the comment upset him.
The minister said this was not the first time he had used the word for HD Kumaraswamy. “Why is it such a big deal? I would apologize if I had called him that for the first time. When we were good friends, Kumaraswamy used to call me Kulla (dwarf) and I used to call him Kariya (dark) “If Kumaraswamy or anyone else gets hurt, I would ask for their apology,” the minister told the media.
Mr Khan is a five-time Congress MLA and a Congress minister in the Siddaramaiah-led state government. He manages the housing, Waqf and minority welfare portfolios. He campaigned for Congress's CP Yogeeshwara in Channapatna Assembly constituency. Mr Yogeeshwara, who had switched to the BJP, has returned to the Congress and will take on HD Kumaraswamy's son Nikhil in the upcoming by-poll. The Channapatna Assembly seat became vacant when Mr Kumaraswamy, the sitting MLA, was elected to Lok Sabha.
Speaking about Mr Yogeshwara's return to the Congress, Mr Khan said: “Due to some differences in our party, he fought as an independent. He had no option but to join the BJP. He was not ready to join the JD(S) because 'Kaaliya Kumaraswamy' was more dangerous than the BJP. Now he has returned home,” the state minister said.
The comment provoked a sharp response from the JDS, which called it a “new low in political discourse.” “The nation strongly condemns Zameer Ahmed's disgraceful and racially charged comments against HD Kumaraswamy. This kind of hate speech marks a new low in political discourse and has no place in a civilized society. We demand accountability from leaders who choose divisive attacks over constructive ones.” dialogue,” the party said in a message on X.
Kiren Rijiju, BJP leader and Kumaraswamy's colleague in the central government, denounced the comment and took the opportunity to attack Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. “I deeply regret that Congress Minister Zameer Ahmed has defeated Minister and ex-CM of Karnataka Sh. Kumaraswamy calls 'Kaalia Kumaraswamy'. This is a racist comment, just like Rahul Gandhi's advisor calls South Indians looking like Africans, the North East looking like Chinese and North Indians. as Arabs,” he said.
