Minister faces flak for ‘Godse son of India’ remark: ‘Then Veerappan, Dawood…’
Union minister Giriraj Singh is facing flak from opposition leaders for dubbing Nathuram Godse, Mahatma Gandhi's assassin, as 'Sapoot' (worthy son) of India.
Day after Union minister Giriraj Singh called Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse ‘sapoot’ (worthy son) of India, a leader of the ruling Janata Dal (United) in Bihar took swipe at the BJP leader saying, in that case, dacoits like Veerappan, underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and fugitive economic offenders like Vijay Mallya can also be called the same. JDU leader Neeraj Kumar asserted that Godse was a disgrace to the nation and can only be adored by the Bharatiya Janata Party
“If someone is claiming that person like Godse is the son of Mother India, then dacoits like Chambal, Dawood, Veerappan and Mallya are also sons of mother India,” Kumar told ANI.
“Godse, Veerappan, Dawood and Mallya can be the darling of the BJP but the worthy sons of India are revolutionaries like Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Ashfaqulla Khan, Ram Prasad Bismil, and Prafulla Chaki.”
Union minister of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Department Giriraj Singh triggered a controversy on Friday by calling Godse ‘sapoot’ of India during his visit to Chhattisgarh's Bastar region. The firebrand BJP leader from Bihar said the assassin of Gandhi was born in India and was not an invader like Mughal rulers Babar and Aurangzeb.
“If he (Godse) was the killer of Gandhi, he (Godse) was also a saput of India. He was born in India. He was not an invader like Babar and Aurangzeb,” the BJP MP told reporters while reacting to AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi's remarks.
Kumar said, “Aurangzeb, Shahjahan and Akbar were born on this soil only. BJP must read history and must not distort it.”
Former Union minister and Rajya Sabha member Kapil Sibal also hit out at the BJP leader saying, “Does that mean anyone born in India who commits murder is a 'sapoot' of India? Was Godse a good son according to Giriraj Singh?...RSS offered help to Britishers, how can they acknowledge Mahatma Gandhi? So this mindset is against the principles of Mahatma Gandhi.”
Aurangzeb-Godse row
A war of words between BJP and opposition parties erupted after clashes in Maharashtra's Kolhapur following a protest by Hindutva outfits against some social media posts allegedly glorifying Aurangzeb and Tipu Sultan. Fadnavis defended the aggression saying “there is bound to be a reaction if Aurangzeb is glorified.” He also said that “suddenly, in some districts of Maharashtra, aulad (progenies) of Aurangzeb took birth.”
This prompted a retort from Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi who said he didn't know the BJP leader was “such an expert” and asked him to “call out the offsprings” of Godse.