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All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) president Asaduddin Owaisi congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi on being conferred Uzbekistan's highest state honour, the Order of "Oliy Darajali Dustlik", while taking a swipe at the BJP over its references to Mughal emperor Babur in political discourse.
"I congratulate the BJP; the very country from which Babur came to India has conferred an award upon the Prime Minister. The Fergana Valley is in Uzbekistan. Wherever the Prime Minister goes these days, he returns with an award. Congratulations. You used to hurl so many insults in Babur's name, yet the people of that very country are now honoring you with an award. The Sangh needs to reflect on this... We hope that members of the Sangh Parivar and RSS supporters will no longer speak of Babur in that manner," he said. Prime Minister Modi on Sunday received Uzbekistan's highest state honour from President Shavkat Mirziyoyev and thanked his "brother" for the recognition, saying that India and Uzbekistan would work together for the welfare of the Global South and humanity. Addressing President Mirziyoyev as his friend and expressing gratitude for the warmth extended to him and his delegation during his two-day state visit, PM Modi said the visit would remain memorable for him. "My friend, the father of the economic revolution in Uzbekistan, who has served as a role model across this entire region in scaling new heights of development--this two-day visit of mine will always be remembered," PM Modi said. Meanwhile, reacting to RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat's remarks made during the 'One World One Humanity' event in New York, Owaisi took a jibe at the organisation. He said, "What the current RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has said is an old trick from the RSS playbook. They will never disavow or retract the things the RSS has consistently stated." He alleged that there was a difference between the speeches delivered by the RSS for the public and those meant for its members. "There is a distinct difference between the speeches they deliver for the outside world and those meant for their own members--this has always been their playbook style," Owaisi said. The AIMIM chief further alleged that the RSS did not participate in India's freedom struggle and referred to the organisation's founder Keshav Baliram Hedgewar's association with the Indian National Congress. (ANI)
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