Freedom fighter and martyr hero Ashfaqulla Khan

Event held to mark the martyrdom day of freedom fighter Ashfaqulla Khan. History of India's freedom struggle incomplete without Jinnah: Organiser. Earlier this year, a Jinnah portrait at AMU was the centre of a row

Sharad Sharma, a spokesperson for the VHP, said the organisers had committed "a great crime", and called on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to take action.

Muhammad Ali Jinnah is back. Well, in the news, at least. The BJP and the Vishva Hindu Parishad were fuming after a photo of the first Pakistan governor-general was put up at an event held Wednesday at the Faizabad jail.

Held to mark the martyrdom day of freedom fighter Ashfaqulla Khan, this event was attended by former Uttar Pradesh governor Ashish Qureshi. It was organised by the Ashfaqulla Khan Memorial Shaheed Shodh Sansthan, a social organisation run by Surya Kant Pandey, a Communist leader. The photo of Jinnah was put up along with those of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Tipu Sultan, Bahadur Shah Zafar and others.

Sharad Sharma, a spokesperson for the VHP, said the organisers had committed "a great crime", and called on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to take action -- against both the organisers and the prison administration.
"The organisers have committed a great crime by displaying the photo of a separatist and a divisive person and for this act, chief minister Yogi Adityanath must take action against the organisers and jail administration."
- Sharad Sharma, VHP spokesperson
But ask the organisers, and you'll get a different perspective. Surya Kant Pandey said Jinnah deserved credit for his contribution to the independence struggle.
"The history of India's freedom struggle is incomplete without Jinnah, he had great role in the freedom movement and we must give credit to Jinnah for his contribution in the battle of Independence."
- Surya Kant Pande, Communist leader.
This isn't the first time Muhammad Ali Jinnah has been in the news this year. A portrait of him at the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) campus, also in Uttar Pradesh, was at the centre of a furious row earlier this year. In August, the Dalai Lama apologised for saying Mahatma Gandhi was willing to give Jinnah the Indian prime minister's post, but Jawaharlal Nehru refused.