‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ has no religious undertone: Naidu

Parliamentary affairs minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said that the ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ slogan has no religious connotation and added that it is just a way to salute the motherland.

Parliamentary affairs minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said that the ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ slogan has no religious connotation and added that it is just a way to salute the motherland.

Parliamentary affairs minister M Venkaiah Naidu speaks to newsmen at Parliament House. (PTI)

“I wonder why this debate is going about Bharat Mata Ki Jai. It is a commitment to the nation. When you say Bharat Mata Ki Jai, you are saying Jai to the nation. We are saluting our motherland,” Naidu said.

“Bharat Mata Ki Jai has no religious connotation. It is salutation to the people. I want to make it very clear it is not simply saying the slogan. When you say ‘Jai Ho Bharat’ then people living in India should all be encouraged, they should all be given the needed support and their interests have to be taken care,” he added.

AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi had earlier rejected RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s suggestion that the young generation be taught patriotic slogans like ‘Bharat Mata ki Jai’ and said that he won’t chant the slogan “even if a knife is put to his throat”.

Leaders of various political parties, including the BJP and Congress, have condemned Owaisi’s stance.