New Delhi, Oct 5 (IANS) BJP and JD(U) leaders have strongly criticised Congress leader Digvijaya Singh over his remarks against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Veer Savarkar and the alleged use of donations collected for the Ram Temple, with NDA leaders questioning his understanding of Sanatan Dharma and the RSS.
BJP leader T.R. Sriniwas hit out at Digvijaya Singh over his remarks on the RSS and Veer Savarkar, saying that the Congress leader should be the “last person” to speak on the issue.
“Digvijaya Singh, you are trying to say something about the RSS and Veer Savarkar. I think you should be the last person to talk about that because Sanatan Dharma does not need a Congress certificate. And we also don’t need your certificate because the entire horrible narrative since 1947, we all know that it is a Left-liberal Islamic ecosystem that created a wrong narrative about Veer Savarkarji. We also know that he spent a horrible time in the Kala Pani jail…,” Sriniwas told IANS.
BJP spokesperson Vinusha also questioned Digvijaya Singh’s criticism of the RSS and his announcement of a 1,000-km padyatra against the organisation.
“I don’t know why Congress leaders hate the RSS so much. Congress leader Digvijaya Singh went on to say that the RSS is divisive, it is anti-Bharat, it is creating divisions between religions, and all those things. Mr Digvijay Singh, what do you know about the RSS? You said that you are conducting a 1,000-km padyatra to oppose the RSS. Do you know anything about RSS? It has over 40 branches…every organisation works for the welfare of every citizen,” Vinusha said.
In Bihar, JD(U) General Secretary Shyam Rajak, reacting to Digvijaya Singh’s announcement of the foot march, said religion and politics should not be mixed.
“Politics should not be brought into religion. If there is politics in religion, it becomes impure and unholy. And if religion enters politics, it brings purity. The way these people are talking, it does not seem that they are interested in doing politics…,” Rajak said.
The NDA leaders’ remarks came after Digvijaya Singh alleged that the RSS and VHP were distorting Sanatan Dharma. In a video statement on X, he said that the term “Hindu” has Persian origins and does not appear in the Vedas, while “Hindutva” was coined by Savarkar.
Singh further alleged that the organisations were creating divisions in society.
He also claimed that donations collected for the construction of the Ram Temple were being diverted into BJP and RSS election funds. He described temple trust official Champat Rai as an “RSS agent”, and announced a 1,000-km foot march from Ujjain to Ayodhya beginning October 20 to protest what he termed the exploitation of temple funds.
–IANS
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