BJP regrets Azad's 'tacit support' to Afzal

New Delhi, Oct 31: The BJP today said Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad was speaking the language of 2001 Parliament attack convict Mohammad Afzal by pleading that capital punishment handed down to him by the Supreme Court be commuted to life imprisonment.

''Even now the Chief Minister is partly retracting his earlier statement,'' BJP Spokesman Prakash Javadekar told newspersons.

Mr Azad had earlier reportedly pleaded for clemency for Afzal.

''He is speaking Afzal's language when he argues for reduction from death sentence for a crime against democracy that killed 11 security personnel on December 13, 2001,'' he added.

He accused Mr Azad of gaining political mileage in the state by pleading for clemency for Afzal as he retracted his statement after almost a month.

The nation is ''correct'' in construing ''Congress ke haath Afzal ke saath'' as it has displayed ''double standards'' on the issue, he added.

Mr Azad, who was in the national capital, denied media reports that he had pleaded for clemency for Afzal.

UNI

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