Muslim cleric Tauqeer Raza dubs RSS a ‘terror outfit’, demands ban

New Delhi, Sep 4 (IANS) Muslim cleric Tauqeer Raza Khan stirred up a major controversy on Wednesday as he described the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) as a terror outfit and demanded a ban on its operations.The Muslim cleric made these controversial remarks while speaking on the Waqf Board Amendment Bill 2024.”The RSS is a terrorist organisation and should be banned if the government wants peace in the country,” Maulana Tauqeer Raza said.The founder of Ittehad-e-Millat Council, a political party, also spoke ill about other right-wing groups including Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Organisation (VHP) and called for banning them.”I don’t have any hesitation in saying that Vishva Hindu Parishad, Bajrang Dal are also terrorist organisations and should be banned,” he said.Notably, the Waqf Amendment Bill is currently being discussed by the Joint Parliamentary Committee for amending the existing governing model of Waqf Boards. The move has left the community divided, with progressive ones speaking in support of Amendment Bill while the conservatives calling it an attempt to impinge upon their faith.This is not a one-off incident. The Islamic cleric has stoked rows on previous occasions also, with his controversial statements.In July this year, he announced a mass conversion and marriage ceremony and claimed that many Hindu girls were ready to adopt Islam after marrying Muslim youths. He tried to justify the religious conversion by claiming that he knew many interfaith couple who were in living-in relationships. When questioned on love jihad claims, he sought to whitewash it and said that nothing such a thing exists.During Kanwar Yatra, as the Uttar Pradesh government’s order to display names of dhaba and restaurant owners received flak from the Supreme Court, Tauqeer Raza called upon the Muslim dhaba owners to display their names outside their shops. His call to Muslim dhaba owners’ statement was viewed by many as divisive and inflammatory, as it amounted to creating a possible situation for communal flare-ups.–IANSmr/pgh