BJP hits out at INDIA bloc over Udhayanidhi Stalin’s Sanatan remark
Union home minister Amit Shah accused the Congress and DMK of insulting Sanatan Dharma for vote bank
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday hit out at the opposition INDIA bloc over Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader and Tamil Nadu youth welfare and sports minister Udhayanidhi Stalin’s controversial remarks on Sanatan Dharma.
Union home minister Amit Shah accused the INDIA bloc of insulting Sanatan Dharma for vote bank, news agency ANI reported.
“For the last two days, the INDIA alliance has been insulting Sanatana Dharma. Leaders of DMK and Congress are talking about ending Sanatan Dharma just for vote bank politics. This is not the first time they have insulted our Sanatan Dharma,” Shah said, addressing a rally in poll-bound Rajasthan, reported ANI.
“Today, the Congress party says that if Modi ji wins, Sanatan will rule. Rahul Gandhi said that the Hindu organisations are more dangerous than Lashkar-e-Taiba,” he added, as quoted by ANI.
BJP president JP Nadda said that Udhayanidhi’s statement was a part of the INDIA alliance’s political strategy.
“They have no hesitation while making such statements...Is Udhayanidhi’s statement a part of the INDIA alliance’s political strategy... Are you going to use this anti-Hindu strategy in the upcoming elections... You have proved multiple times that you hate everything related to our country and your ‘Mohabbat ki dukan’ is spreading hate...,” he said, addressing a rally in Madhya Pradesh’s Chitrakoot, as reported by ANI.
Union minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar called Udhayanidhi’s statement a “classic example of a spoiled brat”.
“Udhayanidhi Stalin is a classic example of a spoiled brat, a person who has not done one day’s honest work in his life, talking about something that is so important and of faith. This nature of INDIA-UPA, whether it is Rahul Gandhi of Congress, Udayanidhi Stalin of the DMK, Akhilesh Yadav of the SP, or Mamata Banerjee’s nephew in West Bengal. All dynastic families constantly insult the faith so that they can appease the minority vote bank that they depend on,” he said, as reported by ANI.
BJP national spokesperson and member of Parliament (MP) Sudhanshu Trivedi said, “Udhayanidhi Stalin’s statements has not been given in isolation. Since some time now, the attack from the INDIA bloc has been evident. U Stalin was attending a conference on ‘Eradication of Santana Dharma’ when he made these comments and it is not that he spoke what he wanted but he was reading from a paper. This means that it was well thought out and well written with a proper design and with a proper conclusion. And this attack came just 24 hours after the (INDIA bloc’s) Mumbai meet.”
At a press conference in Delhi, Triverdi also urged the Supreme Court to take cognisance of the matter.
“The Supreme Court had given an observation that they will take a suo-moto cognisance of hate speech. So I Hope the apex court takes an appropriate step on this utterly unequivocal and violence provoking hate speech,” he said.
Launching a scathing attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Trivedi said, “I want to remind Rahul Gandhi that during his so-called Bharat Jodo Yatra, when he was passing through Tamil Nadu he had taken George Punia who had openly said that he wears the shoes because he considers the land of Bharat Mata - impure’ and he does not want to put his feet on this holy land. This is the real face of ‘Mohabbat ki Dukan’ and this is nothing other than vote bank politics. Their real design has been exposed and this design is nothing but to hit and demolish the basic design of the country.”
Addressing a conference organised in Chennai by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association on the theme of ‘Eradication of Sanatana’ on Saturday, Udhayanidhi, who is the son of chief minister MK Stalin, contended that Sanatan was against the idea of social justice and that it had to be eradicated.
“A few things cannot be opposed, that should be abolished only. We can’t oppose dengue, mosquitoes, malaria, or corona. We have to eradicate this, that’s how we have to eradicate Sanatan. Rather opposing Sanatan it should be eradicated,” he was quoted as saying.
BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya accused Udhayanidhi of calling for a genocide. “He (Udhayanidhi) is calling for genocide of 80% population of Bharat, who follow Sanatan Dharma,” he said on Saturday in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram defended Udhayanidhi saying that equating the latter’s remarks on Sanatan Dharma to a call for genocide is a “mischievous spin”.
Reacting to the allegations, Udhayanidhi later said, “I never called for the genocide of people who are following Sanatan Dharma. Sanatan Dharma is a principle that divides people in the name of caste and religion. Uprooting Sanatan Dharma is upholding humanity and human equality.”
“I stand firmly by every word I have spoken. I spoke on behalf of the oppressed & marginalized, who suffer due to the Sanatan Dharma. I am ready to present the extensive writings of Periyar and Ambedkar, who conducted in-depth research on Sanatan Dharma and its negative impact on society in any forum,” he said on X.
“Let me reiterate the crucial aspect of my speech: I believe, like the spread of diseases like COVID-19, Dengue, and Malaria by mosquitoes, that Sanatan Dharma is responsible for many social evils. I am prepared to confront any challenges that come my way, whether in a court of law or the people’s court. Stop spreading fake news,” he added.
