Jaya Prada slams Azam Khan's son over 'Anarkali' remark

BJP candidate from Rampur Jaya Prada on Monday hit out at the son of SP's Azam Khan, Abdullah Azam, for calling her "Anarkali", saying it shows how the two regard women.

At a public meeting on Sunday in Rampur, Abdullah Azam had said, "Ali bhi humarey, Bajrang Bali bhi humarey, lekin Anarkali nahi chahiye (Both Ali and Bajrang Bali are ours, but we don't want Anarkali)."

Anarkali, a famous courtesan in Mughal emperor Akbar's court, was known to have had an affair with Akbar's son Jehangir. As punishment, she was buried alive in a wall.

"I used to see him as my son. I had not expected this from him as I perceived him as an educated man. It shows how father and son regard a woman in the society. His father called me Anarkali and now he has made the same comment," Jaya Prada said in Rampur.

The Samajwadi Party's (SP) Rampur candidate Azam Khan used to call Jaya Prada, an actor-turned-politician, 'Anarkali', terming her as "nachne gaane wali" (person who sings and dances), because of her Bollywood background.

Abdullah Azam is a SP MLA from Suar seat in Rampur. His father represents Rampur seat in Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

Azam Khan, known for making controversial statements, made headlines last week after the Election Commission barred him from campaigning for 72 hours over his "khaki underwear" jibe at Jaya Prada.

While addressing an election rally, he had said, "I brought her (Jaya Prada) to Rampur. It took you 17 years to identify her real face but I got to know in 17 days that she wears khaki underwear."

Polling will be held in Rampur on Tuesday in the third phase of Lok Sabha elections.