Days after praising Aurangzeb, Abu Azmi pays tribute to Sambhaji Maharaj

Pune: SP MLA Abu Asim Azmi, who has been suspended from the Maharashtra assembly over his remarks eulogising Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, on Tuesday paid tributes to Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj on his death anniversary and hailed him has a valiant warrior.

Sambhaji Maharaj, son of Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, engaged in military campaigns against the Portuguese and Mughals, and was captured and killed in Sangameshwar.

Azmi in a post on X said, "On the martyrdom day of the second Chhatrapati of Swarajya, the valiant warrior, Dharmveer Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, I pay my humble tribute."

Last week, the Samajwadi Party legislator was suspended from the Maharashtra legislative assembly till the ongoing budget session ends on March 26, over his remarks praising Aurangzeb.

Members of the treasury benches had asserted in the assembly that Aurangzeb's praise amounted to insult of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj and his warrior-son Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, both revered figures in Maharashtra.

Crying injustice, Azmi later said the action against him was taken despite him retracting his remark.

The SP leader had said that during Aurangzeb's reign, India's border reached Afghanistan and Burma (Myanmar).

"Our GDP accounted for 24 per cent (of the world GDP) and India was called a golden sparrow (during his regime)," claimed the MLA.

Asked about the fight between Aurangzeb and Maratha king Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, Azmi had termed it a political battle.

His comments rocked both houses of the state legislature on March 4, with members of the ruling side demanding his suspension and filing of treason charges.