New Delhi: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Sunday launched a scathing attack on Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, calling him “anti-Sanatan.” The party alleged that the Congress is engaging in appeasement and vote-bank politics even on Hindu festivals like Diwali . The controversy began with a statement by Kharge. While speaking to reporters on the occasion of Diwali, Kharge had said that Diwali is the “Eid of happiness.” The BJP reacted sharply to his statement.
BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari, targeting Kharge on the social media platform X, wrote that the Congress president calls Diwali the “Eid of happiness.” Even on Diwali, Congress thinks about appeasement and vote bank. Yesterday, Sonia Gandhi cried over Babri, and today, Kharge is appeasing in his Diwali message. Congress is anti-Sanatan. Bhandari also linked Kharge’s statement to an earlier statement by former Congress president Sonia Gandhi. He said that Congress is constantly trying to compromise with Hindu sentiments.
Sonia Gandhi’s Babri Masjid statement
The BJP also linked the controversy to an interview Sonia Gandhi gave to the British newspaper The Guardian, which took place just before the publication of her book, “Belonging: A Journey of Love.” In the interview, Sonia Gandhi recalled the events of December 6, 1992, when the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya was demolished. She said she watched the incident on television and cried.
Sonia Gandhi further stated that the sabotage made her realize that India would have a long struggle to preserve its secular foundations. She also acknowledged that Congress had been negligent in many matters, which had strengthened the BJP and its Hindutva politics. Gandhi’s statements sparked a political debate, with BJP leaders accusing Congress of being sympathetic to Babur.
Sudhanshu Trivedi also targets Congress
Reacting to Sonia Gandhi’s statement, Rajya Sabha MP and BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi told reporters that this shows that Babur was in the heart of the Congress party then and remains so today. Sudhanshu Trivedi accused the Congress party of harboring sympathy for the Mughal emperor. He said that the Congress party’s thinking today remains the same as it was in 1992.
Both issues combined into one controversy
The BJP’s latest attack conflates Kharge’s Diwali statement and Sonia Gandhi’s comments about the demolition of the Babri Masjid into a single political controversy. The party alleges that the Congress prioritizes vote-bank politics even during Hindu festivals.
