On Wednesday (28th February), a member of Karnataka’s legislative council, Congress leader BK Hariprasad said that Pakistan is an enemy country only for BJP. He said that Pakistan may be an enemy for the Bharatiya Janata Party but for Congress, it is just a neighbouring country. The BJP in response said that the statement by the Congress MLC is inciting anti-national sentiments.
BK Hariprasad made this statement while replying to the allegations by the state BJP unit that ‘Pakistan Zindabad’ slogans were raised by Congress supporters outside the assembly house on Tuesday during the celebrations of Congress candidate Naseer Hussain’s victory in the recently held Rajya Sabha elections.
While speaking inside the state’s legislative council, BK Hariprasad said, “They speak about our relationship with an enemy country. According to them, Pakistan is an enemy country. For us, Pakistan is not an enemy country; it’s our neighbouring country. Recently, they awarded the Bharat Ratna to LK Advani, who visited Jinnah’s mausoleum in Lahore and said there was no other secular leader like him. Was Pakistan not an enemy country then?”
The Karnataka state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party criticised BK Hariprasad’s remarks in a post on X. BJP Karnataka posted, “What is the attitude and position of Congress towards Pakistan – BK Hariprasad made it clear in the house. By calling Pakistan an enemy of the BJP and Pakistan a neighbour of Congress, the Karnataka Congress has made it clear that the close relationship between Jawaharlal Nehru and Mohammad Ali Jinnah continues even to the present generation.”
ಪಾಕಿಸ್ಥಾನದ ಬಗ್ಗೆ ಕಾಂಗ್ರೆಸ್ ಒಲವು ಮತ್ತು ನಿಲುವು ಏನು ಎಂಬುದನ್ನು ಬಿ. ಕೆ. ಹರಿಪ್ರಸಾದ್ ಸದನದಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ಪಷ್ಟಪಡಿಸಿದ್ದಾರೆ.
— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) February 28, 2024
ಬಿಜೆಪಿ ಪಾಲಿಗಷ್ಟೇ ಪಾಕಿಸ್ಥಾನ ಶತ್ರುರಾಷ್ಟ್ರ, @INCKarnataka ಪಾಲಿಗೆ ಪಾಕಿಸ್ಥಾನ ನೆರೆಯ ರಾಷ್ಟ್ರ ಎಂಬ ಮೂಲಕ ಜವಾಹರಲಾಲ್ ನೆಹರೂ – ಮೊಹಮ್ಮದ್ ಆಲಿ ಜಿನ್ನಾ ಅವರ ಆಪ್ತ ಸಂಬಂಧ ಈಗಿನ ತಲೆಮಾರಿಗೂ… pic.twitter.com/ylYrn9KWNW
BJP Karnataka added, “Apart from standing by those who shouted slogans of Pakistan Zindabad in the Vidhan Sabha, words are not enough if one talks about the mindset of the Congressmen that Pakistan, which has declared war on India four times, is not an enemy nation. Anti-national sentiments like BK Hariprasad are rampant at all levels of Congress.”
Earlier on Wednesday, the BJP initiated a protest within the confines of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly, claiming that supporters of Congress leader Syed Naseer Hussain, following his successful election to the Rajya Sabha, had voiced pro-Pakistan slogans. They alleged that the ruling Congress was complicit in shielding the individuals involved. However, the Congress has refuted these claims, stating that their party members were merely chanting “Naseer Saab Zindabad” to commemorate Naseer Hussain’s victory, and not expressing any allegiance to Pakistan.
