BJP attacks Dia Mirza, Naseeruddin Shah over 'selective' environmental concerns

New Delhi,The BJP on Tuesday accused actors Dia Mirza and Naseeruddin Shah of "selective outrage" on environmental concerns, alleging that they remain silent on pollution-related matters during festivals of other religions but flag Hindu festivals.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters, BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said, "There is selective messaging. You say that people should take care of the environment. But when Eid and Bakrid come, and there is water pollution because goats are slaughtered, people like Naseeruddin Shah and Dia Mirza do not utter a word."

Bhatia was asked about the Bombay High Court expressing its "deep pain and displeasure" with a controversy over a video of Mirza for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation's (BMC) eco-friendly and firecracker-free Diwali campaign, and asked the civic body to re-upload her clip.


Maintaining that he did not see the high court order and therefore would not comment on it, the BJP spokesman said some people who raise concerns over environmental protection and noise pollution during Hindu festivals remain silent when festivals of other religions are celebrated.

"A citizen is always a citizen. If he is concerned about the environment, he should always be concerned. If he is concerned about noise pollution, he should always be concerned. It cannot be that for Hindu festivals you make statements, but for festivals belonging to other religious denominations, you remain silent," Bhatia said.

He also said that such selective expressions of concern affect the credibility of those raising these issues.

"This is why I would say that these people lack credibility... They do not need to give any message to the Hindu community," he said.

The country functions according to the law, and citizens must respect court orders, Bhatia said.

"I believe the followers of Hinduism are tolerant and they also respect the Constitution. We have seen in the past that decisions delivered by the Supreme Court and high courts have been accepted by the citizens, particularly Hindus, and Diwali has been celebrated," he said.

Taking suo motu note of the Mirza issue, a high court bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Neela Gokhale on Tuesday said it was anguished by the "petty mindset" of certain persons, especially those who represent the common man.

It was "most unfortunate" that such a colour was given to a video made to spread awareness about the environment and air and noise pollution, the bench said.

No person can question as to why the authorities chose a certain celebrity to spread awareness, it said.

Mirza's video for the BMC's eco-friendly Diwali campaign sparked a political row on Monday, after the civic body selectively removed her clip from social media following Mumbai BJP chief Ameet Satam's objection and Mayor Ritu Tawde's comments labelling her as "anti-Hindu".

While Mirza's clip was removed, similar campaign videos featuring actors Madhuri Dixit and Nishigandha Wad, as well as cricketer Ajinkya Rahane, were on the BMC's X and Instagram pages.

Veteran actor Shah recently released a video in support of student protests, where he embraced tags like "anti-national" and "tukde-tukde gang" and declared, "I am a Dimagi Naxal", triggering a row.