Samajwadi Party general secretary Satpal Malik said the audio-visual presence of Imam Abdullah Bukhari of Delhi's Jama Masjid and his gimmicks and utterances may help the communal virus to come to the surface again. It certainly will help the BJP.
Imam Bukhari and Kanshi Ram have been campaigning together in the state since September 8. At a recent meeting, Imam Bukhari came down heavily on Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda and SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav and asked the people not to vote for them.
Apparently retaliating, Malik said the Imam's open support for any party had always helped the BJP. Imam's campaigning against us will have no impact on the Muslim masses. They know his opportunism and they are sure about our consistency and secular credentials, he said.