New Delhi: On Monday, the senior BJP leaders and Union ministers intensified their attack against the opposition bloc I.N.D.I.A. over Udhayanidhi Stalin's "eradicate Sanatan Dharma" remark, with the BJP asking if the recent Mumbai meeting was to target the Hindu religion and the Congress saying that it respects all religions but that others have the freedom to express their views.
On Saturday, DMK leader Udhayanidhi spoke at a meeting of the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers and Artists Association in Chennai. He compared Sanatan Dharma to coronavirus, malaria, and dengue and argued that the only solution was to eradicate it.
Some Congress officials, like Karan Singh, disagreed with AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, who said that the party's policy of supporting all religions was crystal apparent.
The BJP has been critical of the I.N.D.I.A. opposition alliance, claiming that its leaders have been silent on the matter and that they are biassed towards Hinduism.
Advocate Sudhir Kumar Ojha of Muzaffarpur filed a petition in a Bihar court against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin and his son Udayanidhi, claiming that the comments were offensive to Hindus.
As is his custom, Ojha has filed a plea demanding the trial of the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and his son, who is also a cabinet minister, for violating various provisions of the Indian Penal Code. The case has been scheduled for a September 14 hearing.
At a news conference here, Venugopal responded to a question on the controversy by saying that while the Congress' position is very clear, other political parties are free to hold their own views.
"In fact, our position is crystal clear: 'Sarvadharma Sambhav' (universal religious tolerance) is central to the Congress worldview. However, "you have to realise that every political party has its own freedom to tell its views," he emphasised.
The leader of the Congress stated, "We are respecting everybody's beliefs."
Any religion that does not grant equal rights is not a religion and "is as good as a disease," Karnataka minister and Congress leader Priyank Kharge remarked in response to the controversy.
If a religion doesn't insist that everyone is created equal and treated with the respect due a human being, then I don't consider it to be a religion at all. According to Priyank Kharge, the son of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, "it's as bad as a disease."
Former Union minister Karan Singh called the DMK leader's statement "preposterous" and "most unfortunate," adding, "Thiru Udhayanidhi's preposterous statement that Sanatan Dharma should be eradicated is most unfortunate." To varying degrees, billions of Indians adhere to the principles of Sanatan Dharma. Thanjavur, Srirangam, Thiruvannamalai, Chidambaram, Madurai, Suchindram, Rameshwaram, and many more are among Tamil Nadu's many world-famous Sanatan Dharma temples. A respectable politician making such a shockingly indefensible statement is stunning. While Singh praised the splendour of Tamil culture, he strongly disagreed with Udhayanidhi's comments.
Rajnath Singh, Arjun Ram Meghwal, Prahlad Patel, Dharmendra Pradhan, and Anurag Thakur were just few of the Union ministers that challenged the opposition alliance, urging them not to mess with Hindu sentiments.
Singh blasted the opposition over the remarks, demanding to know why Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and Ashok Gehlot remain "silent" on the matter.
Singh, speaking at a public rally in Ramdevra, Jaisalmer to mark the start of the third leg of the BJP's Parivartan Yatra in Rajasthan, claimed that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), a member of the I.N.D.I.A. bloc, had damaged Sanatan Dharma and that the leaders of the Congress party were "silent" on the matter.
He warned that unless I.N.D.I.A. Bloc members publicly apologised for their role in an attack on Sanatan Dharma, the country would never forgive them.
BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad called Udhayanidhi Stalin's comments "shocking and shameful," adding that the son of the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has also echoed them.
In addition, Congress MP Karti Chidambaram was a target of Prasad's criticism for siding with Udhayanidhi.
To paraphrase, "Why are Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Nitish Kumar, and Mamata Banerjee, who lead the opposition, keeping quiet? Are you trying to manipulate Hindu fears for political gain? Sanatan Dharma was not destroyed by hundreds of years of Islamic domination, and it was not watered down by British imperialism, Prasad told reporters.
He further noted that British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak had come out as a Sanatani.
When Meghwal questioned the Congress if the I.N.D.I.A. group had gathered in Mumbai to deliberate its plan against Sanatan Dharma and how to finish it off across the country, he was attacking the opposition parties.
He asked Congress leader Venugopal, "Is this your'mohabbat ki dukan' (shop to spread the love)?" before accusing him of spreading hatred against Islam.
Patel claimed that a scheme hatched during the opposition parties' meeting in Mumbai led to the attack on Sanatan Dharma.
After the I.N.D.I.A. alliance was accused of engaging in "politics of polarisation" by Thakur, they disbanded.
According to Pradhan, the leaders of the 'ghamandia gath bandhan' (arrogant coalition) appear to be in a race to "abuse Indian civilisation, its core belief, and Hindu dharma."
He insisted that the I.N.D.I.A. bloc of opposition parties—and the Congress in particular—explain whether or not attacking Hindus and oppressing "India's majority community" is their idea of free speech.
BJP leader and Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje has called for Udhayanidhi's immediate dismissal.
Priyanka Chaturvedi, leader of the Shiv Sena (UBT), lashed out at the BJP, accusing it of expressing "fake concern" over Sanatan Dharma for its politics.
"Sanatan Dharma represents the ultimate truth, the path of life, the heart and soul. Despite persistent attempts by foreign invaders to eradicate the Sanatani people, they have not only persevered but also flourished. The foundation of the country, which has its roots in Sanatan Dharm, has always been tolerance for people of various backgrounds and beliefs. She commented on X that people who speak ill of it don't understand its meaning.
"Also, the fake concern shown by BJP over Sanatan Dharma for their politics exposes their sick hypocrisy while they are brutally lathi charging sanatanis who are fighting for their rights in Maharashtra," she added.
Swami Prasad Maurya, a leader of the Samajwadi Party, has claimed that the BJP is using religious emotion in order to forward their political agenda.
Mamata Banerjee, chief minister of West Bengal, responded to comments made by Udhayanidhi Stalin by saying she has a great deal of respect for the Tamil people and M K Stalin.
Each faith has its own set of values. 'Unity in variety' is a founding principle of India, where we have our roots. She emphasised that we should stay out of any situation where innocent people could be harmed.
AAP leader Sanjay Singh attacked the BJP, saying that the party had previously denigrated Hinduism.
Singh said, "Is not an insult of Hinduism those who steal donations in the name of Ram, Yogi Adityanath talking about Bajrangbali as Dalit and ascribing caste to a god?"—Inputs from Agencies