Senior BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on September 7 charged the Congress top leadership with maintaining “silence” over controversial remarks about Hindu faith made by some of its own leaders, besides Tamil Nadu ally DMK.
Addressing a press conference in Patna, Mr. Prasad, a former Union Minister asked whether “a decision was taken to denigrate Hindus” at the recently held meeting of the Congress-led coalition INDIA.
“It is not for no reason that the coalition has been called ghamandia. Its members have the ghamand [arrogance] of understanding the sensibilities of India, while showing scant regard for the same,” he alleged.
Referring to Tamil Nadu Minister Udayanaidhi Stalin's likening of Sanatana Dharma to malaria and dengue, Mr. Prasad said, “Now another DMK leader A. Raja has compared the Hindu faith to leprosy and HIV/AIDS”.
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He alleged, “Those within the Congress, like the Home Minister of Karnataka [G. Parameshwara] are questioning the origins of Hinduism. The son of the party's national president [Mallikarjun Kharge's son Priyank Kharge] makes denigratory statements about Sanatana Dharma day in and day out”.
Asserting that the BJP will "never accept such denigration of the Hindu faith”, Mr. Prasad said, “The silence of Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, the movers and shakers of the Congress, baffles the people”.
He also recited a Sanskrit aphorism to emphasise that “silence is tantamount to acceptance”.
Mr. Prasad also displayed sheets of paper which he claimed were copies of the original manuscript of the Constitution.
“Hindu deities like Lord Rama, Goddess Sita and Lord Hanumana were inscribed in the original copy of the Constitution which bears the signature of the members of the Constituent Assembly,” he said.
He continued, “I will ask Sonia Gandhi to develop some understanding of the rich traditions of this country. The signatories include, not just the first President Rajendra Prasad but also her own grandfather-in-law Jawahar Lal Nehru”.
The BJP leader also touched upon the alleged deterioration in law and order in Bihar, ever since the party was stripped of power in the State as a result of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's exit from NDA.
“I wonder what has happened to Nitish Kumar who prided himself on good governance [sushasan]. Not a single day goes when murders are not reported from different parts of the city [Patna] or a number of incidents of chain snatching do not take place in my own constituency, which happens to be the capital of the State,” Mr. Prasad added.
