Uttara Kannada MP and controversial BJP leader Anantkumar Hegde said on Saturday that “the Hindu community won’t rest till it reclaims more mosques” on the lines of Babri Masjid, citing structures in Bhatkal, Sirsi, and Srirangapatna in Karnataka.
He was speaking at a private meeting at Kumta in Uttara Kannada district in the context of the January 22 consecration at Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. The four-minute video of his speech has gone viral. “I have no issues even if some call this a threat, but this is a decision of the Hindu community,” he claimed.
Mr. Hegde also said that the Congress was not the opposition to BJP, but it was Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. “In a democracy parties come and go, that is natural. But our opposition is to the non-Hindu mindset like that of Siddaramaiah,” he said, addressing the Chief Minister in the singular and mimicking him.
When quizzed about this by media persons later in the day, Mr. Siddaramaiah said: “Nothing better could be expected from a person who said they have come to power only to change the Constitution.” Home Minister G. Parameshwara said that attempts to disturb peace in the State would not be tolerated.
Mr. Hegde, who had been maintaining a low profile over the last couple of years owing to his rumoured ill-health, has made a comeback amidst speculations that he wouldn’t be given the ticket this time.
He recently met BJP State president B.Y. Vijayendra and reportedly lobbied for ticket. Sources said the party had told him that there were complaints against him that he had lost touch with people and party workers, which he promised to correct. Following this, Mr. Hegde has become active again and has been meeting voters and party workers regularly, sources added.
