Mustafa is the principal strategic advisor to Congress state unit chief Navjot Singh Sidhu. A day before the FIR was lodged against Mustafa, a video surfaced on social media in which he is seen making purported remarks.
Malerkotla Senior Superintendent of Police Ravjot Kaur Grewal told PTI over phone, “An FIR has been registered under Section 153-A and Section 125 of the Indian Penal Code under the Representation of the People Act.”
Under the charges, an FIR has been registered against Mustafa for promoting enmity between different groups on the basis of religion, race and other identities to take electoral advantage.
An FIR has been registered on the complaint of a police officer of Malerkotla. Mustafa is the husband of Punjab cabinet minister Razia Sultana, a Congress candidate from the Malerkotla assembly seat in Punjab’s Muslim-majority district.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday accused Mustafa of making controversial statements against “Hindus” during a public meeting, while Mustafa vehemently denied the allegation.
A purported video of Mustafa was shared by BJP leaders, Sambit Patra and Shazia Ilmi on their Twitter handle.
State BJP general secretary Subhash Sharma said that his party will file a complaint against Mustafa with the Election Commission, demanding registration of a case against him.
Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha also slammed Mustafa for his alleged remarks and alleged that the Congress was trying to disturb the atmosphere in the state nearing the assembly elections.
Addressing the media here, BJP national spokesperson Ilmi alleged that Mustafa used the word ‘Hindu’ in his statement.
The BJP showed the purported video clip at a press conference, in which Mustafa can be heard saying at a public meeting in Malerkotla on January 20, “I swear to Allah that I will not allow him to do any programme.” I am ‘Qaumi Fauji’… I am not an RSS agent who will hide in the house out of fear.
“If they try to do this again, I swear to Allah that I will beat them up in their house,” he purportedly said in the video.
However, Mustafa denied using the word ‘Hindu’ and said that he had simply targeted Aam Aadmi Party workers as some of them had chased him and tried to misbehave with him.