New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday hit out at Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, accusing them of lying with regard to claims of an alleged purification ritual at an event addressed by Kharge in Uttarakhand’s Haldwani.
Earlier in the day, LoP Rahul Gandhi said: “This is done by BJP-RSS members, and it is a crime under the Indian Constitution. The word ‘Shuddhikaran (purification)’ is just another word for untouchability,” while demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should direct the filing of an FIR against those allegedly involved in the purported act.
Responding to it, BJP leader Gourav Vallabh said: “It has become Rahul Gandhi’s habit to tell lies. All he hears from morning till evening is the ‘Jhooth ki goonj’.”
“Making misleading, false and untrue statements has become his (Rahul Gandhi’s) habit, and for this, he has apologised many times before various courts. Even now what Rahul Gandhi is saying by quoting the Haldwani issue, is completely false. He should stop speaking lies,” he told IANS.
Vallabh also claimed: “People of Haldwani’s Valmiki community are themselves admitting that Rahul Gandhi is lying and attempting to spread a political hoax in order to gain the votes of a particular community.”
Speaking to reporters, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad also said: “They (Congress leaders) are experts at lying. Whether it is Narendra Modi’s government or Yogi Adityanath’s government, we have shown the greatest respect for Dalits. We have provided them their rightful reservation, according to the Constitution. Today, there are new schemes for the development of the Dalit community. Dalits are also making significant progress in the startup sector, while Kharge is spreading lies.”
Uttarakhand Minister Subodh Uniyal echoed similar view, accusing Congress of trying to create caste tensions for political gains.
“By repeatedly speaking about caste-related things, Rahul ji speaks of dividing the country,” he told IANS.
Maintaining that BJP workers were not involved in such acts, Uniyal questioned the Congress’ efforts towards the welfare of the Scheduled Caste during its tenure at the Centre.
“Today people of all caste have equal rights in availing the benefits of government schemes… so such statements (by Rahul Gandhi) are an effort to regain the lost political ground and attempts to create divisions on the basis of caste,” he added.
Uttarakhand Minister Khajan Das also said that the allegation that a purification ceremony was conducted by the BJP at the Ramlila Maidan in Haldwani, “is irrational”.
“The BJP has nothing to do with any purification and distances itself from it,” he asserted.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal recalled that Mallikarjun Kharge had raised the matter in the Rajya Sabha.
“Our (BJP Rajya Sabha) Leader of the House, J.P. Nadda, was also sitting there. He (Nadda) had stood up and said that the Bharatiya Janata Party does not support any such incident. He had made it very clear,” Meghwal told reporters.
(IANS)
