New Delhi:
A week after his controversial comment on the arrest of terror accused Yasin Bhatkal, the Samajwadi Party on Thursday removed Kamal Faruqui from the post of secretary and from its working committee.
Mr Faruqui had said last week that Bhatkal may have been arrested because of his religion.
Speaking to NDTV on his arrival from Lucknow, Mr Faruquidefended his statement. "I have said nothing wrong, I merely expressed what many felt. I stand by my statement. It was not a communal statement. Just because the police have made an arrest, doesn't mean he's a convict. If he is a terrorist, he should be given the harshest punishment. But we have to follow the due process of law. And in our past experience we have seen, many times, those who are arrested are not always the real culprits. We also gave Kasab due recourse to legal procedure."
When asked if he was given any reason for his party's decision, he said, "A mail was sent to me without giving any reason. I would like to speak to the party President (Mulayam Singh Yadav) before taking a call on what I wish to do next."
Yasin Bhatkal, the alleged operations head of the Indian Mujahideen, was arrested from north Bihar, close to the Nepal border last month. He is among the 12 most-wanted terrorists in India.
As alleged chief of operations and co-founder of the Indian Mujahideen, Bhatkal is accused of planning and executing some of the deadliest terror attacks in India in recent years, the most recent being February's twin blasts in a crowded market in Hyderabad in which 16 people were killed and 80 injured.