PTI photo

NEW DELHI:: BJP on Tuesday sought an explanation from Rahul Gandhi over his purported remark that he “did not believe in any form of Hindutva”, saying the Congress president’s comment was not only “humiliating” for the entire Hindu community but had also exposed that his temple visits were merely a drama for votes.

“His comment indicates that he is an ‘ichchadhari’ (shape-shifting) Hindu who became ‘janeu-dhari’ (one who wears sacred thread) for political convenience,” BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said at a press conference, quoting media reports on the Congress president’s interaction with journalists in Hyderabad. Patra said Rahul had recently stated the Congress was a Muslim party and now he said he did not believe in any kind of Hindutva.

“This is humiliating for India’s majority community and a matter of concern. It seems Rahul hates the Hindu community,” he said. The BJP leader said Rahul’s comment showed that his visits to temples and claims by his party’s leaders that he was a ‘janeu-dhari Hindu’ was a “temporary journey” aimed at appeasement of Hindus for political reasons.

He accused the Congress president of playing with the faith of Hindus and asked if Rahul would make similar remarks about any other faith. He claimed Rahul also said he visited temples and met spiritual leaders because he was invited by people there. “He does not go to temples because of faith. His faith is not in Hinduism , but in illegal infiltrators from Bangladesh and Rohingyas,” Patra said.

While the Congress president claimed that he wanted to defeat BJP and RSS, it appeared that he wanted to defeat Hindus, he added. The BJP spokesperson claimed the term ‘Hindu terrorism’ was coined by the Congress-led UPA government after Rahul, according to Wikileaks, had said that radical Hindu groups were a bigger threat to the country.

“Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh had once said Sonia Gandhi could not sleep after seeing bodies of those killed in the Batla House encounter. It shows Congress’s ideology and vote-driven love for a particular community,” Patra said.

