SP leader Abu Azmi slams Suchitra for her Azaan tweet
Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi has slammed singer-actor Suchitra Krishnamoorthi for her tweet wherein she described the morning Azaan played on loudspeakers as "extreme imposed religiosity". He said, "Those who...drink at 2 am in parties in hotels, and sit with their arms on shoulders of strange men and talk, who have spoilt Indian culture have suddenly started criticising [Azaan]."
Actor-singer Suchitra Krishnamoorthi, who finds herself in an eye of a storm over her tweet about the "aggressive/ ear shattering call of azaan", defended herself saying she doesn't have a problem the call but just wants the "loud sound" to be dealt with. Krishnamoorthi raked up controversy on Sunday after posting an early-morning tweet that read, "came (sic) home at 4.45 am 2 (to) most aggressive/ ear shattering call of azaan. Nothing more lowlife & dumb than such extreme imposed religiousity". Krishnamoorthi immediately came under attack - from twitterati and politicians alike. Some, like AIMIM MLA Waaris Pathan indulged in taking personal potshots, calling her a "cheap singer" who tweeted what she tweeted for "publicity." "Such type of cheap singers do this for publicity... She was partying till late in the night... Where was she when Aqlaq was lynched? Where was she when Junaid was thrown on a platform? If she gets so troubled by the sound of azaan, why doesn't she go and stay in Nepal?" Pathan questioned, referring to the lynchings of Mohammad Akhlaq and Junaid Khan both of whom were beaten to death in separate incidents by a mob that suspected them of possessing/eating beef. Samajwadi Party leader Abu Azmi was even more personal in his attack, saying how "these type of women" have "made Indian culture a laughing stock". "These type of women love to dance with skimpy clothes... They drink (the) whole night and have made Indian culture a laughing stock... They should shut their mouth and stop dividing people," Azmi said while demanding action against Krishnamoorthi for her tweets. Speaking to India Today, Krishnamoorthi brushed away Azmi's statements, saying that the SP leader needed to get well. She also defended her tweet saying that she is not against the concept of azaan. "Some people have problem with loud azaan, while some have [a problem with] loud bhajans... We should find a solution for it... I am not asking to stop it (azaan), but (that) the loud sounds be dealt with," Krishnamoorthi said.