Under-fire Firad Hakim reiterates his belief in secular, patriotic values

The state minister had come under attack from the BJP over his purported remarks about Muslims eventually becoming a 'majority'

- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE

State minister and Kolkata mayor Firhad Hakim, who has come under attack from the BJP for his purported remarks about Muslims eventually becoming a 'majority', on Sunday asserted his strong belief in secular and patriotic values.

BJP leaders, including state president Sukanta Majumdar and the saffron party's IT cell head, Amit Malviya had shared a video of Mr Hakim speaking at an event on Friday, where he purportedly said: "We belong to a community that constitutes 33 per cent in Bengal but only 17 per cent in India. Yet, we are labelled as a minority. However, we do not consider ourselves a minority. If Allah's blessings and education are on our side, one day we can become a majority greater than the existing majority. If we can achieve this with our strength, it will be by Allah's grace."