Uttarkashi cloudburst is natural calamity, not a communal issue: Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi

Bareilly, Aug 9 (IANS) Slamming Samajwadi Party leader S.T. Hasan for his controversial remarks on the Uttarkashi cloudburst, All India Muslim Jamaat National President Maulana Shahabuddin Razvi Barelvi on Saturday said the incident was a natural disaster and should not be given a Hindu-Muslim angle.

Speaking to IANS, Maulana Razvi Barelvi said, “Whatever happened in Uttarakhand’s Uttarkashi is a calamity, a natural disaster. Such incidents, unfortunately, occur from time to time. To link them to any religion is completely wrong. What S.T. Hasan has said is nothing but foolishness.”

He emphasisd that people should focus on compassion and unity during such tragic events rather than creating communal narratives.

“We should pray that such tragedies do not occur again. We must pray for the safety and well-being of everyone affected. Giving it a Hindu-Muslim angle, as S.T. Hasan has done, claiming it happened because minorities are discriminated against in the region, is absolutely wrong. No responsible person will support such a view,” he said.

The Maulana further added, “Natural calamities do not discriminate. No one knows where or when disaster will strike. Giving it a religious interpretation only deepens divisions and distracts from the real issues. This is not the time to divide but to stand united as a nation.”

His remarks come in response to S.T. Hasan, a former Samajwadi Party MP, who stirred controversy by suggesting that the cloudburst in Uttarkashi was somehow connected to religious discrimination.

Hasan had said, “We don’t know how many people are still trapped under the debris. It’s heart-wrenching. A whole village has been washed away. Earlier, it didn’t rain like this. Why are such tragedies happening? We need to reflect. We’ve cut down too many trees.”

He went on to say, “In Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, other religions are not being respected. Bulldozers should not be used on dargahs or temples. It's better to evacuate such places peacefully.”

--IANS

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