In a scathing attack on the BJP , three-time Lok Sabha Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, Shashi Tharoor has asserted that in the absence of any development agenda, what the Bharatiya Janata Party wants is to create a “Hindu rashtra”.
Speaking at the Kolkata Literary Meet as reported by PTI , the former UN Diplomat , Tharoor also claimed the real “tukde tukde gang” is the ruling party which is dividing the country into bits and pieces.
“With no development on its agenda, the ruling party is making a complete exposition of its agenda to create a Hindu rashtra,” Tharoor claimed.
The present central government does not have the mentality for development, the Congress leader alleged. “The real tukde tukde gang is the ruling party which is dividing the country into bits and pieces. The party wants to divide us further the way the British Raj did through the divide and rule policy”, he said.
“Tukde tukde gang” is a term often used by the right-wing parties to attack the opposition, particularly Left and Left-backed outfits, as well as those who support them.
“Should religion be a determinant for nationhood? Mahatma Gandhi went for a secular India, unlike Pakistan which went on to become an Islamic state.
“Our Constitution reflects dignity and equality for all. The Constitution reflects that and also essentially rejected the idea of religion-based citizenship,” Tharoor said.
For the first time in India, religion is considered as a determinant for citizenship and excluding one religion, Islam, he said.
“The onus will be on us to prove that we are Indians,” the former MoS External Affairs and HRD. BJP leaders often quote Swami Vivekananda but the monk in his famous Chicago speech had greeted people of all faiths of the world as brothers and sisters, he said.
“But BJP has reduced this to six faiths and three nations”, he said. He was referring to the amended Citizenship Act that seeks to provide Indian citizenship to Hindus, Jains, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Parsis entering India on or before December 31, 2014 from Bangladesh, Pakistan and Afghanistan after five years of residence here.
