Sanatana ‘insult’: BJP’s fresh salvo targets Gandhis

NEW DELHI: The BJP on Tuesday accused the INDIA bloc of having a hidden agenda to target Sanatana Dharma for its vote bank politics as party president JP Nadda led a fresh charge and claimed that attacking the ancient faith is part of a well-thought-out strategy of the Congress and its leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

The BJP seized on DMK leader and TN Minister K Ponmudy’s remarks that the INDIA bloc was forged as an “opposition to Sanatan ideology” to hit out at the opposition.

“The Congress and the INDI Alliance should make their view clear and tell if the Constitution gives the right to make objectionable comments against any religion? Do INDI Alliance members not know the constitutional provisions,” Nadda said on X.

The alliance, the Congress and Sonia and Rahul Gandhi should answer as to why “hate against Sanatan Dharma is being sold in the name of mohabbat ki dukan,” he said. This mega mall of hate is only for power; divide and rule, he alleged.

BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said the country’s culture and heritage are being insulted daily while leaders like Sonia Gandhi are silent.

Such silence is an indication of approval, he said, making it clear that the BJP will go to people on the issue. “We will talk of vikas (development) as well as virasat. India will not tolerate this insult to Sanatan,” he said.

The more Gandhis maintain silence over the matter the more it will be clear that opposing Sanatana is INDIA bloc’s common minimum programme, he alleged.

Accusing almost every party of the INDIA bloc of insulting Sanatana Dharma, Prasad said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and his son had also attacked Sanatana Dharma.

INDIA formed to fight Sanatana: Ponmudy

Though TN Minister K Ponmudy’s comments were made at the same event in which Udhayanidhi made the controversial statement, the video of the same, where he could be heard saying, “INDIA stands against Sanatan Dharma...this is the shared goal of the 26 parties,” was put out by BJP state president K Annamalai on Tuesday. Annamalai posted: “Eradicating Hinduism seems to be the primary agenda of the parties in the I.N.D.I. Alliance. This reveals the true intentions of the I.N.D.I. Alliance .”

Hindu religion menace to the entire world: A Raja

Annamalai also lashed out at DMK parliamentarian A Raja for his purported remark that “Hindu religion is a menace”. Posting a video on X, formerly Twitter, of the former union minister in a discussion making the controversial remark, Annamalai said: “DMK MP A Raja calls Hindu Religion a menace to India & the world. DMK is the principal reason for creating caste divide & hatred in TN, and the DMK MP has the audacity to blame ‘Sanatana Dharma’ for the mess they made.”