New Delhi: The Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has come under fire from Union Minister Hardeep Puri over remarks he made while in the US, when he criticized the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and claimed that the conflict with the BJP was a matter of ideology on issues such as “is a Sikh allowed to wear a turban (or) kada?”
Union Minister Hardeep Puri condemned the statements passed by Rahul Gandhi on his official visit to the USA as a leader of Opposition
In a lengthy attack, Mr. Puri charged that Mr. Gandhi was propagating a “dangerous narrative” among the diaspora in the US. He further criticized Gandhi for holding the role of Leader of the Opposition and bashing the government while overseas.
“He claimed that wearing a turban or kada is tough for Sikhs. Where is he obtaining this knowledge from? I have been wearing a turban for more than 60 years, and I’ve worn kada for even longer…and never come across anyone who expressed any sense of anxiety,” he told NDTV.
“Yes there was one occasion in our post-independence history, in the ‘young’ leader’s father’s time when there was a pogrom carried out against members of my community (referring to the 1984 anti-Sikh riots)….when 3,000 innocent Sikhs were killed in cold blood.”
Yes, at that moment some of my brothers may have temporarily or permanently removed their turbans out of fear for their lives, but never again. Regardless of how you interpret Mr. Gandhi’s remark, I believe it to be really regretful. It is extremely unlikely that any Sikh, including the esteemed leader Dr. Manmohan Singh of the Congress, who served as prime minister for ten years, would have said this.”
“The folks from my community were in front of Mr. Gandhi at the US event where he was speaking. They barely make ends meet in the US and have little emotional ties to the nation. And Rahulji is disseminating this misleading information to them.” stated Mr. Puri.
“There is a very large economy (referring to China) where there is no unemployment, Gandhi said the other day. He has also unleashed an attack against the RSS (the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the BJP’s ideological guru). The fact that he spoke out as the Leader of the Opposition rather than a regular citizen makes this even worse”
“And what has happened (during Mr Gandhi’s US tour)… he has attacked the legal system in India, he has attacked the outcome of the election, that the Congress’ accounts were frozen…” Mr. Puri continued, saying that Mr. Gandhi had failed to bring up the advancements that India had made in the last ten years.
Other BJP Sikh leaders reacted too
Hours before Hardeep Puri’s scathing criticism of Rahul Gandhi for his remarks regarding the freedom of practice of Sikhs, another prominent member of the BJP, Manjinder Singh Sirsa, also attacked Gandhi.
In addition to saying, “Your dirty politics is diving the country,” Mr. Sirsa accused Mr. Gandhi of using “hateful words” against Sikhs. “You have descended to such low as to claim that Sikhs in India are not allowed to wear turbans and kada. You also claim that Sikhs and gurdwaras are unsafe in India. I condemn this.”
Rahul Gandhi’s statement
Speaking with members of the Indian diaspora at a Virginia event, Mr. Gandhi emphasized how “ideological” the battle between the BJP and the opposition is.
In addition, he emphasized that this fight is “for all religions” and criticized the BJP and RSS, claiming that they are unaware that India belongs to all people.