BJP MLA Madan Dilawar alleges Mewat becoming 'mini Pakistan', draws ire from Congress

Triggering a huge row on Wednesday, BJP MLA Madan Dilawar claimed on the floor of the Rajasthan Assembly that the Mewat region is turning into 'mini Pakistan'. Speaking on the law and order situation during the Zero Hour, he asserted that Mewat has emerged as the den of terrorists and goons. Pinning the blame on a particular community, the BJP legislator alleged that there was a lot of discrimination against the Hindus. 

BJP leader Madan Dilawar opined, "The Brij area in Mewat has become the den of terrorists and goons. Cows are openly slaughtered. On many occasions, beef has been confiscated. The goons abducted girls living here. They demolish temples and build mosques. Land belonging to the SC community is being encroached upon."

These remarks evoked uproar from the treasury benches with Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra stated, "You (BJP) know only how to do Hindu-Muslim politics. You will not get one vote because of this". Thereafter, Dilawar reportedly used inappropriate language against Dotasra following which the House was adjourned for half an hour. After the proceedings resumed, the BJP MLA tendering an apology on the insistence of Rajendra Pareek who was in the Chair. 

Speaking to the media subsequently, Dilawar tried to explain the context of his communal comments. He claimed, "In 1987, Congress declared Mewat a Muslim-dominated area dishonestly and constituted a Mewat Development Board. Due to this, they received protection and today the situation is that all religious places and archaeological remains there have been damaged". 

Suspension from Assembly

Elected to the Rajasthan Assembly from the Ramganj Mandi constituency in 2018, Madan Dilawar was appointed as the state BJP's general secretary in 2020. Incidentally, this is not the first time that he has been at the centre of a controversy. On March 16, he was suspended from the state Assembly for 7 days when BJP demanded a debate over the purported phone-tapping by the Ashok Gehlot-led government.

While protesting in the house, the BJP MLA interrupted Independent MLA Sanyam Lodha who was speaking on the demand for grants. Dilawar faced action after he refused to heed Assembly Speaker CP Joshi's warning. A day later, his suspension was revoked after he apologised for his "undesirable behaviour".