The Congress has demanded that the BJP expel from the party former Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat for praising Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin, Nathuram Godse, and calling him a patriot.
“The comment is not only an insult to the Father of the Nation but the nation itself,” All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary Vaibhav Walia told reporters at a press conference at the party headquarters.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi uses Mahatma Gandhi’s name and legacy at every given opportunity, BJP leaders like Mr. Rawat and Lok Sabha member Pragya Thakur glorify his assassin, he pointed out.
If the BJP did not take any action against Mr. Rawat, then it would become obvious that he represents the party’s views on Godse, the Congress functionary said.
He added that Mr. Rawat’s comments proved Rahul Gandhi right; the latter, while addressing the Indian diaspora in the United States recently, had said that India is witnessing a fight between two ideologies: one followed the Mahatma’s ideals while the other idolised Godse.
Referring to this statement by Mr. Gandhi, the former Uttarakhand Chief Minister had recently said that “one doesn’t become a Gandhi just by using the Gandhi surname”.
“Gandhi ji was killed, that is a different issue. But as far as I have understood and read Godse, he too was a patriot. We do not agree with the killing of Gandhi ji,” Mr. Rawat told reporters in Uttar Pradesh’s Ballia.
