The Bharatiya Janata Party will have to pay a huge price for making religion a political weapon in the country, Shashi Tharoor, MP, has said.
Addressing the ‘Veruppinethire Sneha Sandesha Yatra ‘ by T.N. Prathapan, MP, at Guruvayur on Tuesday, Mr. Tharoor said the concept of ‘Bharat’ itself was facing threat.
“The BJP thinks that the believers will stand with it if it constructs a temple by demolishing a masjid. There is a threat against the masjid in Mathura too. This is not development. Who gave them the copyright of Lord Rama. They should not forget that it is the soil in which Mahatma Gandhi took his last breath after calling Hey Ram.”
“The BJP government, which promised two crore jobs a year, demolished one crore job opportunities. The unemployment rate in the county has reached 45.4%, an all-time record. As many as 43 lakh people applied for 6,000 vacancies in Uttar Pradesh recently. These statistics show the severe unemployment in the country,” he said.
“The Modi government is using religion to hide these realities. The Congress, which upholds secular values, is the only alternative for the country.”
“Thrissur has always been a symbol of religious harmony. But the recent news coming from here too is not encouraging. This is a time of resistance. T.N. Prathapan, MP, has led an effort to protect secular values in this context,” he added. DCC President Jose Vallur presided over the function.
Addressing the function at West Nada in Guruvayur, Mr. Prathapan said the campaign was not a political programme. “This is an effort to unite the country,” he said.
“It is time to fight against hatred with the weapon of love. We will oppose the majority fundamentalism of the RSS and the minority fundamentalism of the Popular Front alike. We will not allow anyone to pollute the soil of Thrissur with the poison of religious fundamentalism,” he said.
He was welcomed with a Bible and rosery in front of the Palayur church. On the Chavakkad beach, people received him with a traditional fish workers’ hat. Tuesday’s yatra concluded at Engandiyur.
