Rahul Gandhi’s Distasteful Remarks on Hinduism Creates Furore in Lok Sabha
- In Politics
- 12:20 AM, Jul 02, 2024
- Myind Staff
In his first speech as the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi triggered huge controversy. Speaking on the Motion of Thanks of the President’s Address, he accused the BJP of spreading “violence, hatred and lies” which is against the basic tenets of Hinduism. He said all religions talk about courage and cited Islam, Sikhism to highlight one should be fearless. He lashed out at the BJP in Lok Sabha, saying that Hinduism is not about spreading fear, hatred and falsehoods.
At this juncture, objecting to Rahu Gandhi’s comments, PM Modi said, “Calling the entire Hindu society violent is a serious issue”. Home Minister Amit Shah and NDA MPs also protested against Rahul’s claim and demanded an apology for his statement.
Holding the image of Bhagwan Shiva, he attempted to link the Abhya Mudra seen in the idols of Hindu devi, devatas to the election symbol of his party. He said, “Abhaya Mudra is the symbol of the Congress…. The Abhaya Mudra is the gesture of fearlessness, the gesture of reassurance and safety, which dispels fear and accords divine protection and bliss in Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Buddhis, and other Indian religions… All our great men have spoken about non-violence and finishing defeat.. But, those who call themselves Hindu only talk about violence, hatred, untruth … you are not Hindus”.
Rahul Gandhi indeed said, “Islam also says darna nahi hai (don’t be scared). When prayers are done in Islam, Abhay Mudra is seen in both hands”. He then showed the picture of Guru Nanak Dev and pointed out that it also shows Abhaya Mudra and alleged that the BJP attacks religion every day.
Rahul’s asinine remarks have created furore in the house. BJP MP Nishikant Dubey claimed that Rahul’s speech violated Article 25 of the Constitution which guarantees the Right to Freedom of Religion and urged speaker Om Birla to treat the matter seriously.
Briefing the media, I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw accused Gandhi of spreading lies about Agniveer and lashed out at him for peddling lies despite Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s clarification about 1 crore financial compensation given to Agniveers who lost their lives in the line of duty.
Countering Mr. Gandhi’s accusations on Minimum Support Price (MSP), Minister for Agriculture Shivraj Singh Chouhan demanded the Leader of Opposition to prove his allegations. Responding to Gandhi’s charges of the government calling farmers terrorists, Minister Amit Shah has sharply rebutted him.
Rahul Gandhi’s speech that has elicited a string of sharp rebuttals from political rivals and equally riled religious authorities who strongly contested his statements. Gaddi Nashin of Darga Ajmer Sharif stated, “There is no Abhaya Mudra in Islam”. Expressing disappointment over his statement, he said, “Linking any other symbolic posture to the philosophy and faith of Islam is not the right thing to do”. He urged Mr. Gandhi to develop a better understanding of religious symbols and their respective faiths.
Jagjot Singh President of Gurudwara Patna Sahib Gurudwara hit out at Mr. Gandhi for his poor understanding and said, “Today is a very sad day because of the way our leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi has presented facts about religions in front of the House, according to me he has no information, he presented incomplete information, wrong information in the house”.
He added, “I would like to request him that until there is complete information about any religion, be it Sikhism, Hinduism or any other religion, one should first have complete information, then speak… It is very good that he talked about violence but he probably does not know about the violence that happened with Sikhs in 1984. I want to tell him that there are many families in Delhi itself, he should go to them once and apologise”.
The debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President will likely conclude with PM Modi’s speech on Tuesday (July 2) evening.
Image source: India TV News
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