Amulya Leona was seen persisting when several men tried to stop her on Thursday.
Highlights
- Amulya has been charged with sedition after she raised the slogan
- Her father has criticized her for the chant
- She was arrested last evening, sent to 14-day judicial custody
The father of a young woman, charged with sedition after she said "Pakistan Zindabad" slogan at a protest against Citizenship (Amendment) Act or CAA in Bengaluru on Thursday, has criticized her. "What she said is wrong," he said soon after the anti-CAA event.
The young woman, identified as Amulya, is heard saying "Pakistan Zindabad (Long Live Pakistan)" at the Bengaluru protest in a video. She was arrested last evening and sent to 14-day judicial custody.
Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, who was present at the event, rushed to stop her along with some other men when she was shouting. Condemning her remarks, Mr Owaisi distanced himself and his party - All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) - from the sloganeering.
Amulya was seen persisting when several men tried to stop her. "The difference between Hindustan Zindabad (Long Live India) and Pakistan Zindabad (Long Live India) is..," the woman, 19, is heard saying in the clip, amid a chaos on the stage.
Her father also criticised her. "What Amulya said is wrong. She was joined by some Muslims and wasn't listening to me," he told news agency ANI.
He was confronted by some men soon after the protest, ANI reported.
A case has also been filed against some men, linked to a right-wing group, for throwing stones at Amulya's home last night.
Mr Owaisi has clarified that his party has no links with the woman amid criticism from the BJP. "Neither me nor my party has any link with her. The organisers should not have invited her here. If I knew this, I would not have come here. We are for India and we, in no way, support our enemy nation Pakistan. Our entire drive (against CAA) is to save India," the AIMIM MP was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
JD(S) corporator Imran Pasha claimed she was sent by rivals to disrupt the event. The woman, he said, was not in the list of speakers and demanded that the police investigate the matter seriously, PTI reported.
Massive protests have been held across the country against the citizenship law since it cleared parliament two months ago. While the government says the law is necessary to help those who have faced religious persecution in the neighbouring countries, critics have said it's "anti-Muslim".