Giriraj welcomes abolition of ‘namaz’ break in Assam assembly

Begusarai (Bihar), Aug 31 (PTI) Senior BJP leader and union minister Giriraj Singh on Saturday welcomed the abolition of “Friday namaz break” in the Assam legislative assembly, where it had been in force since the British era.

Talking to journalists in Bihar’s Begusarai district, his Lok Sabha constituency, Singh also slammed leaders of the INDIA bloc for raising objections to the move in the northeastern state ruled by the BJP.

“I thank the Speaker of the assembly in Assam as well as the government of the state for taking the step. It is essential to have uniformity in law and no preferential treatment should be given to any religious community,” Singh said.

Known to be a Hindutva hardliner, Singh bristled when it was pointed out to him that many of the BJP’s opponents have taken a critical view of the step.

He said, “Leaders like Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav are champions of the Muslim vote bank. If they had their way, there would be holidays across the country every Friday.”

He pointed out that there are so many days in the week that Hindus hold sacred.

“But never has the majority community sought a holiday on Tuesdays when we worship Hanuman or Mondays which are associated with Lord Shiva,” Singh said.

“If these opposition leaders ever come to power, they will push the country in the direction of Bangladesh and Pakistan”, fumed the Union minister.

In a post on X on Friday, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said, “By doing away with the 2 hour Jumma break, @AssamAssembly has prioritised productivity and shed another vestige of colonial baggage. This practice was introduced by Muslim League’s Syed Saadulla in 1937.”

“My gratitude to Hon’ble Speaker Shri @BiswajitDaimar5 dangoriya and our legislators for this historical decision,” Sarma added.