Samajwadi Party Leader Abu Azmi is suspended from the Maharashtra Assembly till the budget session concludes. He is being suspended for praising Mughal ruler Aurangzeb. The proposal to suspend him was moved onto the table by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandrakant Patil on March 5.
On March 5, Abu Azmi apologised for his remarks and said that his words had been twisted. He also said that he was ready to take back his statement and apologise if sentiments were hurt.
On his apology BJP leader R. Tamil Selvan said, “He should understand—if Aurangzeb was not wrong, then why would Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj have resisted him? Aurangzeb committed atrocities against common people and women. What he did was absolutely wrong.”
Abu Azmi, praising the Mugal ruler, said, “Wrong history is being shown in 'Chaava'... Aurangzeb built several temples. I do not think he was a cruel administrator.” He also stated that India was known as ‘Sone Ki Chirya’ (Golden Bird) when Aurangzeb was ruling, and the country’s economy accounted for 24% of the global GDP.