Union minister Kiren Rijiju on Thursday sought to downplay his endorsement of a former Delhi LG’s statement that North Indians “enjoy” breaking rules and said it was not pointed at one section but was applicable to the entire society.
He said attempts to “politicise” his statement were wrong and added if there is any wrong happening in the society everyone was responsible for it.
“I think the LG had made the statement about 6-7 years back and I had said that what he said was correct but this is applicable to entire society and not to one section like North Indian, South Indian, East Indian or West Indian. It is not like that. It is applicable on all society and society has to understand that.
Read: Rijiju all wrong about North Indians? Minister gets flak and support
“We regularly come across reports of rape, murder and loot happening here and there and we should be worried about it,” he said when he was asked to comment on his Wednesday’s controversial statement made at a public event.
The minister of state for home said if citizens do not make it an “issue of concern” then how will things get corrected? “It is wrong if someone wants to politicise it (his statement),” he said.
{{/usCountry}}The minister of state for home said if citizens do not make it an “issue of concern” then how will things get corrected? “It is wrong if someone wants to politicise it (his statement),” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“All I meant was that if there is any wrong in society we are responsible for it and we should find out collective ways to correct or mend it,” he said.
Rijiju had on Wednesday said he agreed with the statement of a former Lt Governor of Delhi who had once remarked that North Indians “take pride in and enjoy” breaking rules.
“I was witness to a statement made by one of the Lt Governor’s of Delhi some years back. He had stated that people of north India enjoy breaking the rules and by evening he was forced to apologise.
“But I believe what he said was right,” he had said at a function.
Though he did not name the Lt Governor, records show the comments were made by the then Delhi LG Tejinder Khanna who had said in February 2008 that “it is a specialty of north and west India that the people feel a sense of honour and pride in violating law and boasting that no action has been taken against them”.