Even as the Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan was today heckled by leftist historian Irfan Habib for quoting Maulana Abul Kalam Azad during an event today, NDTV journalist Gargi Rawat brazened out the heckling of Khan, calling him an opportunistic alliance.
https://twitter.com/GargiRawat/status/1210901404438560778?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
Responding to the shock expressed by another journalist Aditya Raj Kaul on the appalling heckling of the Kerala governor by Habib, Gargi flippantly tweeted, “Lol..Not agreeing with heckling, but you’re calling a former opportunistic politician now Governor Arif Mohammad Khan a scholar and renowned historian Irfan Habib a pseudo-liberal”.
Contrary to the claim of the NDTV journalist, Arif Mohammad Khan can’t be called a opportunistic politician. The former Congress leader had resigned from Rajiv Gandhi government and quit the party as he didn’t agree with the Congress government’s decision to overturn the Supreme Court judgement in the Shah Bano case. Khan is a staunch advocate for reforms within the Muslim community, and a vocal supporter of abolition of Tripple Talaq. Khan was the Minister of State for Home in the Rajiv Gandhi government, and if he was opportunistic, he would not have resigned from such an imporatnt ministry over principles.
And for renowned historian Irfan Habib, he is infamous for weaving lies in the Ram Janambhoomi case. He, along with other leftist historians, had said that there was no mention of the dismantling of the temple before 19th century and Ayodhya is Bhudhist-Jain site. It is alleged that while the Muslim parties were ready for a settlement, Irfan Habib and other hisorians didn’t let that happen.
The far-left historian Irfan Habib had attempted to physically disrupt the Kerala Governor during his inaugural address 80th session of the Indian History Congress, and questioned Khan’s right on quoting Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. Habib said that Khan should not quote Azad and instead should cite Nathuram Godse.
The incident pertains to the inaugural meeting of the 80th session of the Indian History Congress held at Kannur University in Kerala today during which Habib had listed down some of his concerns surrounding the Citizenship Amendment Act. But when the governor tried to address those points during his address, Habib impertinently rose from his seat and tried to physically stop the governor from speaking.
Gargi, known for being a pro-Congress journalist, is a prominent NDTV anchor and married to Yusuf Ahmad Ansari. Ansari is the great-grandson of former Congress President Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari. In 2007, Yusuf Ansari wrote a hagiography of Sonia Gandhi titled ‘Triumph of Will’. He was a member of the department of policy planning and coordination of the All India Congress Committee. Ansari contested 2007 Uttar Pradesh assembly election as Congress candidate. It may be noted that many people wrongly assume former vice president Hamid Ansari to be the grandson of Mukhtar Ahmad Ansari, but actually he is the grandson of the brother of the former Congress president.