Intensifying his attack on the ruling party in the state, information and broadcasting minister Manish Tewari stated on Monday that the Akalis had glorified terrorism in Punjab whenever it suited their convenience.
Tewari made these allegations in a dig at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) campaign committee chief and Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, who in his rally at Modhopur last week, had spoken in detail about terrorism. "Modi's speaking about terrorism in front of Akali leaders, including chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, is surprising. The same Akalis had supported, condoned, endorsed and glorified terrorism whenever it suited their convenience," said the union minister.
Modi's speech betrayed the BJP's double standards or lack of moral courage to call a spade a spade, Tewari said on the sidelines of a tube-well inauguration in Ludhiana. Terming the SAD-BJP relationship in the state a marriage of convenience, Tiwari asked the Akali leaders to state their position on the BJP's stand seeking abrogation of Article 370 that aimed at undermining the principles of federalism.
The minister asked Badal to make it clear how he viewed Modi's stand on uniform civil code, since it aimed at "undermining the diversity and distinct identities of people and challenged the very idea of India". "The advocacy of the code means abrogation of the Anand Marriage Act and other laws that safeguard the distinct identity of different religious groups," said Tewari. "It is surprising how the CM did not react to this and rather was seeing supporting Modi," he added.
{{/usCountry}}The minister asked Badal to make it clear how he viewed Modi's stand on uniform civil code, since it aimed at "undermining the diversity and distinct identities of people and challenged the very idea of India". "The advocacy of the code means abrogation of the Anand Marriage Act and other laws that safeguard the distinct identity of different religious groups," said Tewari. "It is surprising how the CM did not react to this and rather was seeing supporting Modi," he added.
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