Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s first speech as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha triggered a political firestorm as he accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of spreading “violence, hatred and lies”, which, he said, were against the basic tenets of Hinduism advocated by Lord Shiva.
“This is a country of non-violence, not that of fear. Our saints spoke of non-violence. Shiv ji ne kaha daro mat, darao mat… ahimsa ki baat karte hain… apne trishul ko zameen mai gaadh dete hai, aur jo log apne aap ko Hindu kehte hai, wo 24 ghante hinsa, hinsa, hinsa…nafrat, nafrat, nafrat…asatya, asayta, asatya. Aap Hindu ho hi nahi (Lord Shiva said one should not be fearful or scare others. He spoke of non-violence. And these people who call themselves Hindus spread violence, hatred and lies round the clock. You are not Hindus),” Gandhi said, speaking on the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address.
He added, “Hindu religion clearly states that one should stand with the truth, not retreat from the truth.”
There was a furore among the MPs on the treasury benches over the remarks made by the Congress leader, who said that the reaction of the ruling party was a reflection of the fact that his message had hit home. At that point, Modi stood up and said, “This is a very grave issue. Calling the entire Hindu community violent is very serious.”
Gandhi promptly retorted, saying he was not calling the Hindus violent. “Modi, BJP and the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) don’t represent all Hindus. The BJP does not have a monopoly over Hindu religion,” he said.
Amid the uproar in the Lower House, Gandhi doubled down on his statement, saying that the defeat of the BJP in Faizabad constituency, under which Ayodhya comes, was a “message” in itself. He claimed that Modi did not contest from Ayodhya as the BJP’s surveyors had conveyed to him the writing on the wall, and so, he went to Varanasi, where he “scraped through”.
Congress General Secretary , Priyanka Gandhi Vadra backed Rahul’s comment saying he did not insult Hinduism. “He cannot insult Hindus. He said it very clearly. He talked about the BJP, he talked about BJP leaders,” Priyanka Gandhi said after Rahul Gandhi’s maiden speech as the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.
