Raveena defends Owaisi over Aurangzeb tomb row

MUMBAI:  Amid the uproar in Maharashtra over AIMIM leader Akbaruddin Owaisi paying respects at the tomb of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb near Aurangabad, the controversial politician received support from an unexpected corner – actor Raveena Tandon.

Reacting to a tweet flaying Owaisi, the actor on Saturday wrote that India is a free country and everyone has equal rights to worship. “We are a tolerant race, have been, will be and will remain so. This is a free country. Worship anyone if you have to; rights are equal for all,” Tandon said.

“For some time, it has become a fashion to label my motherland as intolerant. This just proves how intolerant we are. And how much we can absorb?” wrote the actor, who is an active Twitter user writing and commenting on climate crisis and rights violations.

Tandon has had face-offs with right-wing outfits in the past and her relation with the saffron camp hasn’t been a smooth one. In 2018 the vocal actor had said that she didn’t join politics because she “always call a spade a spade”.  Her latest comments come at a time when all major parties in Maharashtra have been training their guns on junior Owaisi.