Condemning the attack on the Communist Party of India (Marxist) office by a group of youth today, party leader Sitaram Yechury said that it was a ploy to scare him after he had demanded Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh to provide proof of his claim that the protest at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) campus had the backing of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) chief Hafiz Saeed.
"Our accessible office now has barricades. Their idea is to try and scare us off! Us today-who tomorrow #GujaratModel. Tweet ka jawab pathar se? Just a poser to Home Minister and #SanghiHandles deface our Central Office! #GujaratModel," Yechury tweeted.
Yechury had earlier asked Rajnath for evidence after the latter made the startling allegation that 'anti-national' protests in the JNU campus had the backing of the LeT.
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"He is the Home Minister and he needs to have proof to back his statement. He is known to have retracted his tweets earlier on the Pathankot incidents. So, we don't know on what basis he is saying this or what evidence he has," Yechury told ANI.
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He asserted that if the Home Minister managed to bring up evidence of any 'anti-national' or terrorist activity at the varsity then the CPIM (M) will support necessary action in national interest.
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"But don't use that as a pretext to attack progressive cultural values, which is what is the objective that appears very clearly being pursued by the government. Rajnath has to come out and share the evidence that he has with the country," Yechury added.
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Meanwhile, CPI (M) leader AK Padmanabhan told ANI that attack on the JNU is 'undemocratic' and 'authoritarian', adding that the issue would be taken up in West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu where the assembly elections are due.
