Congress making mockery of Hindu faith: Yogi in Karnataka

Those who don’t like Ek Bharat concept backing anti-national organisations, says UP chief minister in Karnataka poll rally

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday accused the Congress of backing anti-nationals over the party’s declaration to equate the Bajrang Dal with the banned Popular Front of India (PFI).

Karnataka: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at an election campaign rally in support of BJP candidates ahead of Assembly elections, at Koppa near Chikmagalur on Saturday. (PTI)

“The Congress is making a mockery of the Hindu faith by proposing to ban Bajrang Dal, which the majority community will not tolerate. Those who do not like ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat’ (One India, Great India) are backing anti-national organisations like PFI,” he said at a public meeting in Chikkamagaluru district of poll-bound Karnataka.

In its manifesto for the Karnataka assembly polls, the Congress said it was committed to taking firm and decisive action against individuals and organisations spreading hatred amongst communities on grounds of caste and religion.

“We believe that law and Constitution are sacrosanct and cannot be violated by individuals and organisations like Bajrang Dal, PFI or others promoting enmity or hatred, whether among majority or minority communities. We will take decisive action as per law, including imposing a ban on such organisations,” the Congress had stated.

“I come from land of Lord Ram in Uttar Pradesh to the land of Hanuman in Karnataka. The bonding between the two states underlines that both states are proof of the concept of ‘Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat but those who don’t like this somewhere encourage anti-social and anti-national organisations like the banned PFI for they simultaneously want to ban organisations which are committed to patriotism and social service,” Adityanath said.

He underscored the fact that the Ram temple issue at Ayodhya was pending for more than 500 years and was resolved when BJP governments came to power.

He also made the people raise the slogan ‘Jaikaara Veer Bajrangi, Har Har Mahadev’ in praise of Lord Hanuman and Lord Shiva and then urged the crowd to take the “slogan” to the masses so that the PFI supporters “bite the dust”.

“The PFI was encouraged when the Congress and the JD(S) government were in power in Karnataka but now due to the BJP’s ‘double-engine government’, there is peace, harmony and security. The double engine government in Karnataka has banned PFI,” he said.

He also invited people of Karnataka to attend the grand opening of Ram Temple in Ayodhya in January next year.