Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday accused the ruling BJP of attempting to provoke Hindutva forces and deepen religious polarisation in the country.
Had a strong leader like Indira Gandhi been in power today, she would have banned a party like the BJP for such actions, the three-time former Chief Minister asserted while addressing a function organised by the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Welfare Society at the Constitution Club of Rajasthan here on Sunday afternoon.
The programme was held to commemorate the martyrdom day of Nawab Dada Kayam Khan.
“Just look at the approach of those in power today. Their approach is weakening the country. They are deliberately promoting religious polarisation,” Gehlot said.
“There are 403 Assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh, but the BJP did not give even a single ticket to a Muslim candidate, and yet it calls itself a national political party. At least they could have allotted five seats to demonstrate inclusiveness before the people of the country. Instead, they want to project that they are a purely Hindutva party. Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi defended the BJP effectively for years, and Shahnawaz Hussain served as a minister, but today the party has sidelined them,” the senior Congress leader remarked.
“Their approach is simply to provoke Hindutva forces in order to remain in power. Had a towering leader like Indira Gandhi been alive today, she would have imposed a ban on a party like the BJP,” Gehlot said, posing a series of questions: “Will you run a party solely on the agenda of Hindutva? Do you want to do politics only in the name of Hindus? What is written in our Constitution? The Constitution, on which you took your oath, speaks of equal respect for all religions, castes and sections of society. You cannot do politics in the name of religion, but today this is happening openly.”
Recalling an earlier political episode, Gehlot said, “I remember when Bhairon Singh Shekhawat contested an election from Bali, a few words regarding the Ram Temple slipped out during his campaign. He won the election and later became Chief Minister, but someone filed a case against him in the High Court.”
“The case was so serious that he could have lost his Assembly membership. However, lawyers and officials somehow managed to save the situation for Shekhawat by counselling and persuading the witness,” he claimed.
“What I want to say is that there was a time when even invoking religion during an election campaign was prohibited. Religion could not be brought into electoral politics,” Gehlot said.
“And look at the present times, when even the role of the Election Commission is being questioned. Today, people openly incite religious sentiments on every occasion. Neither does anyone speak out against this misuse of religion, nor does anyone approach the courts,” he added.