BJP demands apology from Rahul Gandhi over remarks in Lok Sabha speech
The BJP accused Rahul Gandhi of making disparaging remarks against Hindus and misleading claims about the Agnipath recruitment policy for the armed forces
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday demanded an apology from Congress lawmaker and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of making disparaging remarks against Hindus and misleading claims about the Agnipath recruitment policy for the armed forces.
Gandhi in his speech in the Lok Sabha during the debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s address accused the BJP of cultivating communal divide and said Agniveers who die in action are not treated at par with the other recruits.
“Our great men spoke about non-violence...those who call themselves Hindus talk only about hatred... aap Hindu ho hi nahin (you are not a Hindu),” he said targeting the BJP.
Holding up a picture of Hindu God, Lord Shiva, he said “If you look at Lord Shiva’s image you know Hindus can never spread fear and hatred... but the BJP spreads fear and hatred 24x7.”
The BJP dubbed Gandhi’s comments against the party as a statement against Hindus. Party president and Union minister, JP Nadda, in a post on ‘X’ said, “Rahul Gandhi Ji must immediately APOLOGISE to all Hindus for terming them as violent. This is the same person who was telling foreign diplomats that Hindus are terrorists. This intrinsic hate towards Hindus must stop.”
Even as the Congress clarified that the statement was specifically meant for the BJP and not Hindus in general; the BJP did not relent.
Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said Gandhi has raised questions about the armed forces, commented about the Speaker’s post and tore the ordinance of his own government.
“He tried to mislead Parliament... he said compensation had not been paid to farmers in Ayodhya, whereas ₹253 crore has been paid to over 4,000 shopkeepers. The most important issue is that he insulted Hindus. In 2010, the then home mnister P Chidambaram called Hindus terrorists, in 2013 Sushilkumar Shinde said the same. In 2021, Rahul Gandhi said ‘Hindutvavadis’ should be expelled,” Vaishnaw said addressing the media.
Alleging that Gandhi lowered the dignity of polity to a level that is “condemnable”, the minister said showing picture of Gods and linking it to politics is “unpardonable”.
“He (Gandhi) made some objectionable remarks in Parliament today. He said that martyrs won’t receive compensation under the Agniveer scheme. This is a big lie. During Rahul Gandhi’s speech, defence minister Rajnath Singh said that martyrs under the Agniveer scheme will be given compensation of ₹1 crore. Congress has always made such remarks against the armed forces and tried to mislead the public,” he said.
Taking potshots at Gandhi, Vaishnaw said the position of Leader of Opposition is a “very responsible” one but the statements he made in the House are “very irresponsible.”
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju also slammed Gandhi and said, “We have made a request to the Speaker to pass a direction that if we have made an unverified statement then we are ready to take a corrective course. But if the Leader of Opposition has lied in the House, then he will have to face the rules and regulations of the House. He (Speaker) has already assured in the House that he will give necessary and appropriate directions in this regard...”
Refuting the BJP’s claims, Ayodhya MP Awadhesh Prasad said Gandhi did not say anything about Hindus. “...He spoke about the mindset of the BJP and the ideology of the RSS. His statement was not for Hindus, it was for the people of BJP, RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh),” he asserted.