By IANS,
Jammu : Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah is opposed to the invocation of the stringent National Safety Act (NSA) against young Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Varun Gandhi.
Abdullah, whose National Conference is ruling the state in alliance with the Congress, Thursday said slapping the NSA against Varun Gandhi was wrong.
“The NSA has different connotations,” the chief minister told reporters here.
Varun Gandhi, an aspiring BJP MP from Pilibhit in Uttar Pradesh, has courted controversy for allegedly making inflammatory speeches against Muslims last month, inviting sharp reaction from the Congress and other political parties.
But Abdullah said: “I don’t think a hate speech by a young individual can threaten the safety of the nation.”
Varun Gandhi was arrested Saturday, sparking off violence in Pilibhit. The Uttar Pradesh government slapped the NSA against the him for inciting violence prior to his arrest.
Meanwhile, actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha termed the arrest and invoking of the NSA against Varun Gandhi as a political conspiracy. ” This is a sheer conspiracy against Varun, nothing else.”
Sinha was addressing an election rally of Jammu’s BJP candidate Leela Karan Sharma.