‘Naqvi should prove charges or apologise’

‘I am ready to go to his (Naqvi’s) place or he can come to mine and have a discussion and give proof. If he is right, I am ready to be hanged...,’ he said, and claimed that Naqvi may have considered Ali a ‘threat’ to his position in party.

He was addressing a press conference a day after BJP annulled his membership within 24 hours of his induction following intense opposition from within and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Naqvi had attacked Ali as ‘a friend of terrorist Yasin Bhatkal’ and strongly opposed his entry into the party, terming it a ‘mistake’ that needed to be rectified. Ali said that the allegations levelled against him were completely ‘baseless’.

He and his family have been affected by it and Naqvi must apologise or prove his allegations, the leader said.

Ali’s wife, who was also present during the press conference, threatened to sit on a dharna in front of Naqvi’s house if the BJP leader did not apologise.