Amidst the attack on Shah Rukh Khan by saffron leaders over his "growing intolerance" remarks, BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi claimed he had aired such views following an "Enforcement Directorate notice" even as her party distanced itself from similar comments by Yogi Adityanath. Lekhi also termed "illiterate" all who have spoken out and returned awards over claims of "growing intolerance" in the country and said they were "patronised (sic)" under Congress's tenure.
"I want the world to know that he (Shah Rukh) received an ED notice on October 26 and India became intolerant on the 1st or 2nd of November," Lekhi said on the sidelines of an event here.
"And, when it comes to intolerance, then probably they are those illiterate people who do not know what the history of the country had been under Congress rule," she said.
Lekhi, the New Delhi MP, said that if it was not for ED, then why had Shah Rukh not spoken out when there were talks of "ousting Tasleem Nasrin from the country or when Salman Rushdie's book was banned".
"He should raise his voice on the anniversary of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the Mirchpur or Gohana incidents. Several such incidents happened when Congress was in power but then they were mum," she said.
Lekhi also sought to justify MP Adityanath's remarks comparing Shah Rukh to LeT founder Hafiz Saeed, asking "who will tolerate" the sort of statements that were made.
"Their intentions are not clear from these statements. No Indian citizen has any liking for Saeed and when they don't have any liking, then are the audience of these people in other countries?
"Talking about justification when such improper statements are made and you are continually provoked, then you grow a certain amount of annoyance and people have their own style of speaking," she said. Shah Rukh came out strongly in a TV interview against what he termed "extreme intolerance" in the country, saying intolerance towards creativity and religion will hurt the country.
"There is intolerance, there is extreme intolerance...," he had said.
Meanwhile, BJP strongly disapproved of Hindutva leader Adityanath's comments comparing Shah Rukh with Saeed, terming them "uncalled for" and maintaining that they did not reflect in any way the core belief of the party or Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
