Sam Pitroda, the Congress’s overseas unit chief, is back in his post — with an apparent caveat. The party’s communication in-charge Jairam Ramesh said Mr  Pitroda had “given an assurance” that he would, in future, leave no room for controversy. Asked about the matter, Mr Pitroda replied, a trifle sharply, that it was not the Congress view, but the view of Mr Ramesh.

“The Congress is not saying that. Jairam is saying that,” he told NDTV in an exclusive interview today. “What Jairam says is Jairam’s view, it is not necessarily the party’s view. It is okay for Jairam to say that and I respect it. I have to do what I have to do. In the process, I am entitled to make mistakes,” he said.

Mr Pitroda, who had stepped down from his post on May 8 after a couple of comments that became hugely controversial, was reinstated yesterday.

The reappointment was announced by the party in a statement. Later in the evening, Mr Ramesh said the decision was taken after Mr Pitroda clarified the context of the statements and gave an assurance that he would not “leave room for such controversies to arise” in the future.

In a post on X, Mr Ramesh said, “During the recent election campaign Sam Pitroda had made some statements and comments that were totally unacceptable to the Indian National Congress. By mutual consent he stepped down as Chairman of Overseas Indian Congress.”

“Subsequently he clarified the context in which statements were made and how they were later distorted by the Modi campaign. The Congress President has reappointed him on the assurance that he will not in future leave room for such controversies to arise,” he had added.

During the recent election campaign Sam Pitroda had made some statements and comments that were totally unacceptable to the Indian National Congress. By mutual consent he stepped down as Chairman of Overseas Indian Congress. Subsequently he clarified the context in which…

— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) June 26, 2024

Mr Pitroda had stepped down from the party’s overseas post after his comment that India is a “diverse country… where people in the East look like the Chinese, people on West look like Arabs, people in the North look like maybe White and people in South look like Africans.”

It had triggered allegations of racism and colonial mindset. With the controversy of Mr Pitroda’s earlier comments yet to die down, the Congress had found itself firefighting on multiple fronts, its campaign focusing on unemployment, inflation, farmers issues and the Constitution completely overshadowed.

In April, Mr Pitroda had made a remark on inheritance tax in the US that had drawn a fierce attack from the BJP. He had cited inheritance tax as an example of “new policies that can “help prevent concentration of wealth” which should be discussed and debated. The Congress, he had added, always helps people at the bottom of the economic pyramid.

Mr Pitroda today admitted that he could perhaps have put it better, while making the point that the focus today is not about the meaning in a conversation but its form.

What cannot be questioned, he underscored, was his commitment to the Congress.

“I am grown up. I know my responsibility for my party. I am committed to Congress. I have been a congressman from Day One and I will remain a Congressman till I die… It has nothing to do with what I say… but my commitment to values. I believe in the Congress ideology,’ he added.

New Delhi:

Sam Pitroda — Congress’s overseas unit chief who is back in saddle after a seven-week break — today stood by his statement about diversity among Indians that were seen as racist, but admitted that he could have put it better. “It is not about words but about the meaning… but maybe I could have done a better job,” he told NDTV in an exclusive interview.  And about the row that followed that comment, he shrugged it off.

“I have to run my life. They can twist the fact that I live in Chicago and why I am talking about India… I would expect civilised conversation, dialogue… but that is lost… People are not interested in the substance of a conversation, they are interested in the form of the conversation,” he said.

Mr Pitroda had stepped down from the post in May after his two consecutive statements sparked huge controversies. He was reinstated yesterday.

In an exclusive interview with The Statesman in early May, Mr Pitroda had described India as a “diverse country… where people on East look like the Chinese, people on West look like Arabs, people in the North look like maybe White and people in South look like Africans”.

It had triggered a huge uproar in the run-up to the election, coming on the heels of his comments about inheritance tax.

Barely two weeks before, Mr Pitroda had cited inheritance tax as an example of “new policies that can “help prevent concentration of wealth” which should be discussed and debated. The Congress, he had added, always helps people at the bottom of the economic pyramid.

His remarks were interpreted as advocacy of inheritance tax in India and Prime Minister Narendra Modi had remarked that if elected, the Congress would redistribute the personal wealth of people among “infiltrators” and won’t even spare the mangalsutras of women.

Mr Pitroda today said no one had questioned him about what he meant before jumping to conclusions. “When I made the comment on inheritance tax, I did not mean that I’m proposing inheritance tax. How do you come to that conclusion?”

His comments about diversity were also twisted, he said.

“Next time I said something about – my way of saying how diverse we are, people thought it was racial. There is nothing racial in saying that we came from Africa. It is a fact of life. And who says that being black is racist? No. I am dark. My wife is not very dark. So what?” he said.

“We tend to make issues out of nothing. And that’s the reason I decided that is better to take myself out,” he added. That was the way to bring back the focus on issues that matter, he said.

New Delhi:

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury’s “we have Proto Australoids… Mongoloid… Negrito (in India)” comment – referring to now-outdated racial and anthropological groupings of humankind – triggered a fresh row Thursday, a day after Sam Pitroda’s “North Indians look like white (people)… South Indians look like Africans” remark spawned a furious pushback from the BJP and accusations of disrespecting Indians based on skin colour.

“We have Proto Australoids, Mongoloids, (and) Negrito class of people. Hai to hai (It is how it is) … in the demography of our country, regional features are different. What someone said (referring obliquely to Mr Pitroda’s comment) is his opinion…” Mr Chowdhury said.

“But it is true some people are white…and some are dark,” the Congress leader said.

Mr Chowdhury’s statement – seen as an attempt to defend Mr Pitroda after his racist remarks – has been slammed by the BJP, with Shehzad Poonawalla also dredging up the row over the Bengal Congress boss’ comments about President Droupadi Murmu in July 2022. 

“It shows the words are from Sam Pitroda and the soch (way of thinking) is of the Congress. Calling Indians ‘Negrito’… Is this justifying comments by Uncle Sam (a jibe at the United States-based Mr Pitroda)? Is this why they did not sack him? Will they sack Adhir… who in the past said ‘rashtrapatni’ for Droupadi Murmuji?” Mr Poonawala raged.

Adhir Ranjan crosses the limits

In defending Sam Pitroda he calls Indians (Negro or Negrito/Negrita )
Safed, Kala !

Both words are offensive https://t.co/YSzE7DaJAX

It shows that the words are Sam Pitroda but soch is of Congress

Calling Indians as Chinese / African/… pic.twitter.com/9v0Uf0ChEd

— Shehzad Jai Hind (Modi Ka Parivar) (@Shehzad_Ind) May 9, 2024

The Congress has not yet responded to Mr Chowdhury’s comment.

On Wednesday an excerpt from Mr Pitroda’s interview with The Statesman was circulated online, in which he described India as a “… diverse country… where people in the East look like Chinese… people in the North look like, maybe, white (people) and people in the South look like Africans”.

READ | “South Indians Look Like Africans…”: Sam Pitroda Embarrasses Congress Again

The Congress distanced itself from the remark – which followed another equally controversial comment by Mr Pitroda about inheritance taxes – but not before it drew a furious response from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who said the country “won’t tolerate disrespect on the basis of the colour of skin”.

READ | PM’s Retort To Sam Pitroda’s Racist Flub, BJP Leaders’ ‘Look Indian’ Posts

Repeating his “shehzade (prince)” barb for Mr Gandhi, he said, “Shehzade, you will have to answer. The country will not tolerate the disrespect of our countrymen on the basis of the colour of skin…”

READ | Sam Pitroda Quits After Landing Congress In New Mess Over Racist Remark

Hours after the comment Mr Pitroda quit as chief of the Congress’ overseas unit. Party comms boss Jairam Ramesh said the resignation was “of his (Mr Pitroda’s) own accord”.

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New Delhi:

Senior Congress leader Sam Pitroda – whose comment last month about an inheritance tax in the United States sparked a massive fight with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party – has triggered another row in his attempt to make a pitch for national unity. 

In an exclusive interview with The Statesman, Mr Pitroda described India as a “… diverse country… where people on East look like Chinese, people on West look like Arab, people on North look like maybe White and people in South look like Africa”. 

The remark has been slammed by senior BJP leaders, including Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh and his Assam counterpart,  Himanta Biswa Sarma, who posted on X, ” Sam bhai, I am from the northeast, and I look like an Indian. We are a diverse country – we may look different, but we are all one.”

“Hamare desh ke bare mein thoda to samajh lo! (Please understand at least something about our country)” the senior BJP leader hit back at Mr Pitroda.

Sam bhai, I am from the North East and I look like an Indian. We are a diverse country – we may look different but we are all one.

Hamare desh ke bare mein thoda to samajh lo! https://t.co/eXairi0n1n

— Himanta Biswa Sarma (Modi Ka Parivar) (@himantabiswa) May 8, 2024

Actor-politician Kangana Ranaut, the BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, also responded, accusing Mr Pitroda of making “racist” and “divisive” comments. 

“Sam Pitroda is Rahul Gandhi’s mentor. Listen to his racist and divisive jibes for Indians. Their whole (the Congress’) ideology is about divide and rule. It’s sickening to call fellow Indians Chinese and African. Shame on Congress!” she said.

BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla called Mr Pitroda’s comment “shocking, despicable and disgusting”.

“He is the mentor of Rahul Gandhi. It is the word, spirit, vocabulary and ideology of Rahul Gandhi… First, they divided on the basis of caste, religion and language. Now, they are dividing Indian vs. Indian. And to make a comment like Indians are like Chinese, isn’t it a racist comment? Isn’t it insulting and objectionable ? It shows ‘Congress ki Mohabbat ki Dukan actually has ‘nafrat‘ and ‘racism ka saman‘…”

#WATCH | Delhi: On Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress, Sam Pitroda’s controversial “People in East look like Chinese, in South look like Africans…” remark, BJP leader Shehzad Poonawalla says, “This is a shocking, despicable and disgusting comment made by Sam Pitroda. He is… pic.twitter.com/jQ9tMRAkyY

— ANI (@ANI) May 8, 2024

Mr Pitroda was responding to a question about what the Congress has tried to make one of the fundamental issues of the 2024 Lok Sabha election – that the BJP, should it win this poll, will look to alter the basic nature of the country’s socio-economic fabric, including by changing the Constitution.

Mr Pitroda referred to a “really divided country today based on ideas of India”, and said, “It is not a question of who is right or wrong… but a question of what you believe in.”

“… there is another view that says our founding fathers fought the British Raj not for a Hindu nation but for a secular nation. Pakistan decided to make a nation based on religion… you can see how that is going. We are a shining example of democracy in the world. We have survived 70-75 years in a very happy environment, leaving aside a few fights here and there,” he said.

“… we are all brothers and sisters, we respect different languages, religions, customs, and food. As a Gujarati, I love dosa. So, if I go to Tamil Nadu and speak the local language, it is ok. I am still at home… that is my India, rooted in democracy, freedom, liberty, and fraternity,” he declared. 

This view, Mr Pitroda declared, “is being challenged by one that includes the Ram Temple and Ram Navami and the PM going to temples all the time and talking not as a national leader, but that of the BJP”.

This comes days after the BJP ripped into the Congress over Mr Pitroda’s comments over an inheritance tax. 

Mr Pitroda’s comments then came as the Congress fended off a vicious attack by the BJP, which was sparked by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks about Muslims, and claims of “wealth redistribution… to those who have the most children… to infiltrators”. Mr Pitroda then, speaking to news agency ANI, had said the Congress always helps people at the bottom of the economic pyramid, and cited the inheritance tax in the United States as an example of “…new policies so concentration of wealth can be prevented”.

READ | Congress In Firefighting Mode Amid Row Over Sam Pitroda’s Remarks

The BJP had hit back fiercely, with several of its leaders taking aim at Mr Pitroda over his comments and allegations of the Congress’ “wealth redistribution” plans, which the party firmly denied. 

NDTV FACT CHECK | Has Congress Really Promised ‘Wealth Redistribution’?

The Congress, on that occasion, had distanced itself from Mr Pitroda’s comments, with senior communications figure Jairam Ramesh saying, “this does not mean Mr Pitroda’s views always reflect the position of the Indian National Congress”.