Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Tuesday dared the BJP-led government at the Centre to do with the Bangladesh dispensation what Donald Trump has done with Venezuela, suggesting it was instead making a scapegoat out of the “poor” Mustafizur Rahman.

Omar also criticised the BJP for targeting Jammu and Kashmir’s Muslims for their representation in the recent Mata Vaishno Devi Medical College admissions and the Santosh Trophy football team, asking the parents not to admit their wards to the Jammu-based college due to the prevailing environment of fear. He urged the Centre to shut the college and admit students to some other medical institution.

The chief minister, responding to questions in Jammu on the expulsion of Rahman from the IPL, said it would further harm the relations with Bangladesh.

“What is the fault of the poor player? I accept our relations with Pakistan are very bad, but what have the people of Bangladesh done to us? Our relations with the people of Bangladesh were good. They still are. Bangladesh is not involved in any terrorism in our country and did not damage us. We have close relations,” he said.

“One player was removed. It is hurting the World Cup. Bangladeshis say they won’t come to India to play the T20 World Cup. They want their matches somewhere else.”

Told that minorities were being targeted in Bangladesh, Omar asked the Indian government to deal with the neighbouring country’s dispensation instead of targeting sportspersons.

“What Mr Trump did with Venezuela, you do it in Bangladesh, if you want to do that. What is the fault of this player? He was ready to play. His team did not want to remove him. Read their statement. They had to forcibly send him back. Neither did the player want to return, nor did his team want to send him back. There was pressure from above.”

Omar asked whether Rahman’s removal would improve the situation. “No, it won’t,” he replied.

Referring to protests led by BJP leaders in Jammu against a large presence of Muslims in the medical college, he said the students got the seats because of their hard work.

“Nobody did any favour to them, neither me nor the university. They cleared the exams. Now, if you do not want to admit them, adjust them somewhere else,” he said.

“I think these children will not like to study there as of today, (because of) the situation (of fear) created. If I were their parent, I would have fearfully sent them there. I ask them (parents) not to send them there. Let the ministry of health of the government of India arrange some other college for them. We will send them there. We don’t want to send them where there is so much politics. Close the medical college, it is not worth running,” Omar said.

He accused BJP leaders of linking sports with politics, referring to the controversy over the Santosh Trophy team.

“We see sports as sports, ask those who connect sports with politics. When they look at the team, they look at the religion of its players. They see nothing but religion. When more Muslims were in the football team, they had objections with the football team. When fewer Muslims figure in the cricket team, they have no objections with that squad. They look for religion in everything, in education, in sports.”

Omar, reacting to BJP leader Sham Lal Sharma’s call for creating a separate Jammu state, asked whether this demand too was based on religion. He said the BJP had already destroyed Ladakh and asked whether the party wanted to destroy Jammu as well.