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Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Vinay Katiyar on Wednesday stirred another controversy after he said that Muslims should not stay in India as the ‘community divided the country on the basis of population’.

Speaking to ANI, Katiyar said, “Muslims should not stay in India. They divided the nation on the basis of population. So, what’s the need of them staying here (in India)? They have been given lands. (They) should go to Bangladesh or Pakistan.”

The BJP MP also said that there should be a bill to punish those who do not respect Vande Matram. “There should be a bill that punishes those who do not respect Vande Matram, those who insult the national flag… those who hoist the Pakistani flag, they should be punished,” Katiyar said.

Katiyar’s remarks came after AIMIM chief Asaddudin Owaisi demanded that there should be a law against those who call an Indian Muslim ‘a Pakistani’. Speaking to the media on Tuesday outside the parliament, Owaisi urged the government to introduce a law to this effect and suggested a punishment with three-year jail term to any person who says this, reported ANI.

Two days ago, Katiyar had said that the Taj Mahal in Agra will soon become “Tej Mandir”. When asked about the ‘Taj Mahostav’ being held in Agra, the MP told ANI, “Call it Taj Mahotsav or Tej Mahotsav both are the same things. There is not much difference between Taj and Tej. Our Tej Mandir has been turned into a cremation ground by Aurangzeb.Taj Mahal will be converted into Tej Mandir soon.”