Sonu Nigam’s old azaan tweets surface again, he says it is ‘time for us all to come together’

Sonu Nigam, who is spending the lockdown in Dubai, is being haunted by his old tweets on azaan (a mosque’s call to prayer). His 2017 tweets complaining about the sound of azaan resurfaced online and were at the receiving end of much criticism.

The singer has issued a statement, expressing ‘surprise’ about being dragged into the controversy all over again. In a statement given to DNA, he said, “Now is the time for us all to come together to overcome this invisible enemy (Covid-19) and nothing is more of a priority.” He added that he has not been on Twitter for the last three years and did not want his name to be associated with unnecessary controversy.

Last week, after Sonu faced flak on social media, singer Adnan Sami came to his defence. “As far as Sonu Nigam is concerned, forget about his singing which is incredibly beautiful; he is a true brother who has always been by my side & loved me like my own!! I know for a fact, personally, that he respects all faiths!! Kindly leave him alone... #WithYouSonuNigam,” he tweeted.

In 2017, Sonu was in the eye of a storm over his tweets on azaan and ‘forced religiousness’. Following the controversial tweets, he shaved off all his hair after a cleric issued a fatwa, offering Rs 10 lakh to anyone who shaved the singer’s head.

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At a press conference, Sonu clarified that he raised a ‘social’ issue and not a religious one. “I am a secular person. It was not about azaan, it was about the loud sound,” he said, adding that he mentioned temples and gurudwaras as well, but it went unnoticed.

Meanwhile, Sonu organised an online concert for his fans last month. The entire performance was streamed on his YouTube channel and garnered more than one million views. In a video shared on Instagram, he thanked fans for making it his “biggest ever concert”.

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