Abdul Bari Siddiqui from Bihar's ruling Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party has faced criticism from a junior federal minister for recommending his children "settle abroad", citing an unsafe "atmosphere" at the moment.
RJD's Muslim politician Abdul Bari Siddiqui is the national general secretary of the party.
Reacting to his comments on Monday, federal Junior Minister Nityanand Rai opined that Siddiqui's comments appeared to be based on his own party's dwindling support among the people.
"As India's junior minister of home, I am saying, loudly, that India is the only country where everyone is safe, minorities are also safe. Their safety was the Centre's policy. So, what he is saying is out of frustration at the dwindling mass base of the RJD," Rai told reporters on Monday.
While trying "to highlight the country's atmosphere", RJD politician Siddiqui explained on Friday that "I have a son who is studying at Harvard and a daughter who has a degree from the London School of Economics. I have told them to find jobs abroad and, if possible, take citizenship there."
"When my children reacted with disbelief, pointing out that I was still living here (in India) I told them they will not be able to cope," Sidiqui added.
The federal junior minister asked Siddiqui to move to "Pakistan" if he felt so unsafe in India.
Although the RJD lawmaker's remarks were heavily criticized by the BJP, Bihar state chief Nitish Kumar's party Janata Dal (United), a local ally of RJD, endorsed his thoughts.