The Bharatiya Janata Party has come out guns blazing against the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, over his remarks on the Sikh community and accused the Congress party of inciting people and “massacring” the Sikhs during the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, while the Congress party has defended the leader’s remark, saying he has only highlighted ‘injustice’ in the country.
This comes amid a row created by Rahul Gandhi’s remarks in the United States, where he said that today the fight in India is whether a Sikh person will be able to wear his turban, kada, and visit Gurdwara.
Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri slammed Rahul Gandhi and said that he is trying to incite people who live outside the country, and making statements without any basis.
“I have been wearing ‘Turban’ and ‘Kada’ for more than the last 60 years, and I have never come across anyone who would say that they have any difficulty in wearing a ‘Turban’ and a ‘Kada’. It was in his (Rahul Gandhi’s) father’s time when a pogrom was carried out. Our 3000 people were killed… It’s not like he is unaware of all this…He has been in politics long enough. So he should realise that if he is outside the country or even inside the country and makes such statements, then he will be laughed at. This is a statement which deserves to be condemned in the strongest possible terms…He is trying to incite our brothers who live outside the country…He is making statements without any basis,” Puri told ANI.
Union Minister Giriraj Singh criticised the Congress leader and accused his party of doing ‘appeasement politics’.
“The Congress, who post-independence has been doing appeasement politics, massacred the Sikhs, is trying to teach a lesson. Mere yaha kahavat hai, ‘jo log agayaani jayada hote hai vo apne gayaan ka pardarshan jayada karte hai’ (Fools display their intellect much more),” Giriraj Singh said.
“Rahul Gandhi said that he would give it in writing that we will win 400 seats…Those who were not able to cross the mark of 99 seats were talking of winning 400 seats…We will have to go below the belt to answer him…PM Modi came to power for the third time after garnering more votes than his grandmother,” he added.
BJP leader Manjinder Singh Sirsa also condemned the statement made by LoP Rahul Gandhi on “Sikhs” and said that the Gandhi family has a lot of hate against Sikhs.
“I condemn this statement. These kinds of statements being made by Rahul Gandhi against Sikhs are not new…The Gandhi family has a lot of hate against Sikhs. No one can even think of removing our turbans, gurudwaras…He is demeaning a community for political gains…He is spreading confusion and trying to divide the country to gain power…He wants support from China, Pakistan and the USA, that’s why he is making these kinds of statements abroad,” Sirsa said.
BJP MP Manoj Tiwari also slammed the Lok Sabha LoP, saying Rahul Gandhi has become a leader who speaks ill of the country abroad.
“The leaders of America also never speak ill of their country abroad…These kinds of leaders are very dangerous to the nation who speak ill of the country…He made a wrong statement regarding the Indian Sikh community. Which Sikh has to seek permission to visit Gurudwara, wear a turban?… His behaviour shows that these kinds of leaders should not be trusted…Rahul Gandhi has made many statements to end reservations…He has always been against reservation,” Tiwari said.
Taking a jibe at Rahul Gandhi, BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla asked what is the ‘Idea of India’ according to Rahul Gandhi, that “Indira is India.”
“When Rahul Gandhi lost an election in Amethi, he said that the people of north and Uttar Pradesh didn’t understand the issues. He also said that the people of Kerala understand the issues…We also remember how one of the leaders of the Congress party, brother of DK Shivkumar, said that the south should separate from the north. Is this your idea of India? Is this your idea of putting one state against the other state? We also remember what statements DMK has made about the entire north India,” Poonawalla said.
“Today, if Rahul Gandhi truly believes in the idea of India, what is the idea of India? Indira is India? That is what Congress has said. Has Congress ever condemned that statement where they equated one person to the entire country? Today Rahul Gandhi should condemn that statement. And Rahul Gandhi preaching about the Constitution is like the devil preaching scriptures. Your alliance partner is saying 370 should come back…Do you support 370…Rahul Gandhi should clarify this rather than preaching to us,” he asked.
BJP MP Jagdambika Pal said that being the LoP of Lok Sabha, he (Rahul Gandhi) is criticising India on an international platform.
“They can criticise India as much as they want in the Parliament. The truth is that 10 years ago, India was counted in the top 5 fragile economies of the world. And today, when India is in the top 5 economies of the world and talking about being in the top 3 economies by 2027, he (Rahul Gandhi) is behaving like an agent of China. He praises China and Pakistan and criticises his own country. PM Narendra Modi says that even if you want to abuse him, do that in India. But, he (Rahul Gandhi) is embarrassing India by maligning its image abroad,” Jagdambika Pal said.
Attacking the Congress with a veiled reference to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, BJP National General Secretary Dushyant Kumar Gautam said that the statement on the Sikh community is made by those who “massacred the Sikhs.”
“Which religion is the BJP trying to stop? These statements are being made by those who massacred the Sikhs…On the other hand, the BJP government brought ‘Guru Granth Sahibji’ with respect from Afghanistan. We worked to increase the respect of Sikhs in the country… We inaugurated the Kartarpur corridor. Veer Baal Diwas is celebrated every year…He should not spread confusion,” Gautam said.
UP Minister Jaiveer Singh said, “There has always been a tradition in democracy that inside the country we keep accusing each other for political reasons, but outside the country, whether it is the leader of the opposition or the ruling party, their only job is to raise the voice of the country..but Rahul Gandhi is breaking this tradition, so I think this is not in the national interest.”
The Congress party on the other hand, has defended Rahul Gandhi’s statement and accused the BJP and RSS of ‘dividing’ the nation.
Senior Congress leader V Hanumantha Rao said, “Union Minister Kiren Rijiju has said that Rahul Gandhi is disrespecting India. He is not disrespecting India.
All the religions and communities live in India. But RSS and BJP are trying to break India’s unity…They are separating people for the votes. RSS is trying to make (India) a Hindu country. This is what he (Rahul Gandhi) is telling. He is not saying anything wrong…During the Bharat Jodo Yatra, he got to know what kind of injustice is being done…RSS has been doing this from the very start to break the nation…Rahul Gandhi has just talked about the discrimination being done in this nation.”
Congress leader Srinivas BV said, “Whatever Rahul Gandhi has said is right. I don’t know why the BJP has become so nervous. These (BJP) people have never understood the Constitution. They are saying that Rahul Gandhi has insulted India on foreign soil but I believe BJP people (PM Modi) have insulted India in Germany, China, America, Canada, and Doha.”
CPI-M leader Subhashini Ali also reacted to Rahul Gandhi’s claim that “the fear vanished in one second” after the election results, and said that after the Lok Sabha elections some kind of change has come.
“As the party that had a majority previously has now become the coalition government. But it does not matter that there has been a change in the BJP’s policies; it remains the same,” Subhashini Ali said.
The Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP from Raebareli, Rahul Gandhi, during his interaction with the Indian diaspora said that the fight is about whether a Sikh, is going to be allowed to wear a turban in India and would be able to visit a Gurdwara.
“First of all, you have to understand what the fight is about. Fight is not about politics. It is superficial. What is your name? The fight is about whether he, as a Sikh, is going to be allowed to wear his turban in India. Or he as a Sikh is going to be allowed to wear a kada in India. Or a Sikh is going to be able to go to Gurdwara. That’s what the fight is about and not just for him, for all religions,” he said.
Further, he continued his tirade against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, claiming that the “fear of Prime Minister Narendra Modi” among people had vanished after Lok Sabha elections 2024 results were declared.
“Something has changed after the elections. PM Modi tried to create an environment of fear. Various agencies, media, income tax department tried to spread fear, even among small and medium-sized businesses. But, nothing worked. The fear vanished in one second. The spread of fear took years and consumed a lot of money, but it vanished. You can see it in parliament right upfront… And I can tell you that the idea of PM Modi, 56 inch chest, direct connection with God. That’s all gone. It’s history now. He, his partners in government and India, the three or four senior ministers in his government realise it.” he said.
Rahul Gandhi, who is on a visit to the US, arrived in Dallas on Sunday. He interacted with students and teachers at the University of Texas and also addressed the members of the Indian diaspora in Dallas and Virginia.