On 8 September, Congress scion Rahul Gandhi, as part of his almost week-long Europe tour, addressed students and academicians at the Sciences PO university in Paris. During the event, he shared the stage with Hinduphobic author Christophe Jaffrelot, who has written against India, Indian courts, BJP, PM Modi, and was part of the ‘Dismantling Hindutva’ event. Through his interaction, the Congress leader targeted the ruling party in India, that is the BJP, from foreign soil yet again.
The Wayanad MP claimed that the BJP wants to remain in power at any cost and it could do anything for that. Going further, Gandhi claimed that there was nothing Hindu that the BJP does.
During the interaction, a student said that in many of his interactions, he had found that many of his friends and relatives have been affected by ‘Hindu nationalist’ rhetoric. Afterwards, he posed a question to Rahul Gandhi asking him what the stand of the coalition government would be vis-a-vis Hinduism in the ‘Post-BJP’ era.
In reply, Rahul Gandhi said, “I have read the ‘Gita’, I have read a number of the Upanishads, I’ve read many Hindu books; there is nothing Hindu about what the BJP does, absolutely nothing.”
Going further, the Congress leader claimed that no Hindu book, seemingly for political subtleties revered religious books just become ordinary Hindu books, talk about ‘terrorising’ or oppressing the weak. He also argued that the BJP has nothing to do with Hindus and their acts have no Hinduness.
Rahul Gandhi said, “I have not read anywhere, in no Hindu book, from no learned Hindu person have I ever heard that you should terrorise, harm people who are weaker than you. So, this idea, this word, Hindu nationalists, this is a wrong word. They’re not Hindu nationalists. They have nothing to do with Hinduism. They are out to get power at any cost, and they will do anything to get power. They want dominance of a few people and that is what they are about. There is nothing Hindu about them.”
I have read the Gita, Upanishads and many Hindu books. There is nothing Hindu about what the BJP does—absolutely nothing.
— Congress (@INCIndia) September 10, 2023
I have not read anywhere in any Hindu book or heard from any learned Hindu person that you should terrorize or harm people who are weaker than you.
They… pic.twitter.com/mEj2vOrAxq
His remarks come at a time when the Congress party and its alliance partners in the I.N.D.I.A. bloc are facing the heat for a spree of hate speeches against Sanatan Dharma (Hinduism) and have called out for its eradication. Pertinent to note that Gandhi, who claims to be a Janeudhari Brahmin didn’t talk about constant attacks against Hinduism and rugged it under the carpet while asserting that minorities are under attack in India.
Further, using the unfound trope of 40% vs. 60% pro and against the government, the former Congress President claimed that 60 percent of India voted for the opposition parties while just 40 percent voted for the ruling party. Using that argument, the Congress leader claimed that it is wrong to assume that the majority community is voting for the BJP.
He said, “So this idea that the majority community is voting for the BJP, this is a wrong idea. The majority community actually votes more for us than they vote for them.”
It is important to note that these binary mathematical calculations claiming that a clear divide between – for and against don’t hold water in a multi-party democratic system.
During the interaction, Rahul Gandhi also talked about the ongoing India-Bharat rename row. He highlighted that the Constitution begins with “India that is Bharat, a Union of States”, and permits the usage of both names, India and Bharat.
However, the Congress leader argued that by changing nomenclature the ruling party has been trying to erase or change history which according to him should be embraced as it is.
He said, “The Constitution uses both names. I don’t see any problem. Both names are acceptable. But I think we irritated govt by naming our alliance INDIA. There is something deeper going on. People who want to change their name or anything are basically trying to deny history. They don’t want the history of our country to be known to our future generations.”
