Bhopal:

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said invaders who came to destroy Sanatan Dharma got destroyed themselves, comments coming in the backdrop of critical remarks made against the ancient faith by leaders of the DMK, a key member of the opposition INDIA bloc.

The BJP leader asserted the fusillade against Sanatan Dharma reflects nothing but frustration in ranks of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA), which has more than two dozen parties.

“During the past 10,000 years, invaders who came to destroy Sanatan Dharma got destroyed themselves….this religion stayed on. You don’t have strength or courage to finish Sanatan,” Mr Fadnavis said, addressing a rally organised during the BJP’s ‘Jan Ashirwad Yatra’ in Dhar district of poll-going Madhya Pradesh.

Terming the opposition front as “khichdi” (coalition of parties with different ideology) and collection of ‘ghamandia’ (arrogant) people, Mr Fadnavis targeted Tamil Nadu minister and DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin for his comments comparing Sanatan Dharma with diseases like dengue and malaria, and calling for its eradication.

He said after this, the son of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyank Kharge, a minister in the Karnataka government, also called for uprooting Sanatan Dharma.

“Whenever Sanatan was attacked, a king like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj came out and saved Sanatan. Whenever Sanatan temples were demolished, our queens like Ahilyabai Holkar came out and rebuilt them,” said the BJP leader.

He urged people to use their votes to send a strong message to those calling for destroying Sanatan Dharma.

Attacking Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath, Maharashtra’s deputy CM said these days “chunavi Hindus” (Hindus for election purposes) have come up in the country.

“As soon as election comes, they remember Hanuman Chalisa, temples, Bholenath (Lord Shiva). They go to Ujjain (which houses Mahakaleshwar Temple)… I wanted to ask these chunavi Hindus — if you have courage then say openly you will not tolerate the insult of Sanatan,” Mr Fadnavis said.

The BJP leader maintained if Nath has courage, then he should tell his party colleague Priyank Kharge to seek apology from Hindus for insulting Sanatan Dharma.

“If you (INDIA bloc) abuse Sanatan Dharma for some votes, the country’s 80 per cent Hindus will not forgive you. The BJP respects all religions, but why only Sanatan Dharma is being targeted… why they don’t speak against other religions?” he asked.

Mr Fadnavis said if anti-BJP parties speak against any other religion, they will not get votes of that faith’s followers.

The deputy CM stated that the BJP’s agenda is development and welfare of the poor but “we need to teach a lesson to people who abuse our religion, culture and nationalism” through the upcoming elections.

The assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh are due by the year-end. In view of these polls, the ruling BJP has rolled out the ‘Jan Ashirward Yatra’ to “seek people’s blessings”. Several such yatras are currently going on covering different parts of the state and they will culminate in Bhopal on September 25.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Chennai:

The BJP-led Centre should be targeted on “corruption” and Sanatan Dharma debate must be avoided, DMK President and Chief Minister M K Stalin advised his party workers on Wednesday.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi telling his Cabinet colleagues days ago to defend Sanatan Dharma is a clear pointer that he is trying to derive political mileage out of the row, the Tamil Nadu’s ruling party chief said in a statement.

One of the Union Ministers is trying everyday to divert people’s attention by deliberately attempting to make Sanatan a talking point. “Our people should not fall prey to the trick of the BJP to hide its failures.” Dravidar Kazhagam chief K Veeramani has pointed out that the BJP wants to prevent debate on corruption and hence it is diverting attention by focusing on Sanatan Dharma, the Chief Minister said. Veeramani has underscored that “we should talk more on BJP’s corruption.” Hence, Mr Stalin urged his party cadres, office-bearers and leaders of alliance parties including the Congress and Left parties to keep the focus on graft.

“Let us work with dedication to win our cherished goal of protecting the country and democracy by defeating the graft tainted, communal and despotic BJP regime and I appeal to everyone to not give room to attention diversion.” People knew pretty well that those belonging to the BJP are adept in making people forget real issues and divert attention.

The Chief Minister listed alleged irregularities in Central schemes, including the Bharat Mala and Dwaraka expressway projects to the tune of Rs 7.50 lakh crore and claimed the CAG report has exposed it.

Referring to the Manipur violence, Mr Stalin said the BJP regime is spineless to “douse fire” and it is trying to change the course of national discourse. The recent victory of INDIA alliance partners in the bypolls is a precursor, symbolising a nation-wide win for the combine in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Jaipur:

Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has said anyone who speaks against the Sanatan Dharma would have his tongue pulled out and his eyes gouged out.

A video of Mr Shekhawat making the purported remarks went viral on social media. He was speaking at a public rally in Barmer district of poll-bound Rajasthan last week during BJP’s Parivartan Yatra.

Reacting to the recent comments made by Tamil Nadu Youth Welfare Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin against the Sanatan Dharma, Shekhawat said, “We have to stand up to the challenge. We will pull out the tongue of anyone who speaks against Sanatan. We will also gouge out those eyes raised against Sanatan.”

“We challenge that no person who speaks against Sanatan will be able to maintain political position and power in this country. They try to attack our culture and history,” he said.

On September 2, Udhayanidhi Stalin, son of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, had alleged that the Sanatan Dharma is against equality and social justice, and that it should be eradicated. He also likened Sanatan Dharma to coronavirus, malaria, and dengue fever.

In the rally, Mr Shekhawat also said the opposition INDIA alliance is a grouping of those who have been involved in various scams like fodder scam and others. He said opposition parties’ objective is to defeat Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

“(Congress president) Mallikarjun Kharge says that if Modi wins, Sanatan will become powerful, hence there is a need to defeat him. Two days ago, the DMK Chief Minister’s son made remarks against Sanatan. He (Udhayanidhi Stalin), while comparing it to coronavirus, says that Sanatan culture should be eliminated from the country,” the Jodhpur MP said.

Mr Shekhawat said that many invaders tried to weaken Indian culture for 2,000 years.

“Rulers like Alauddin Khilji and Aurangzeb tried but ancestors of yours and mine were capable and protect the culture. We swear by all those ancestors, whether it is Maharaja Surajmal, Veer Durgadas or Maharana Pratap, that we will not tolerate those who attack Sanatan. We will throw them away,” the Union Jal Shakti Minister said.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The Congress on Thursday said it did not agree with the remarks of DMK leaders Udhayanidhi Stalin and A Raja on ‘Sanatan Dharma’ and asserted the party believed in “sarvadharma sambhav” (equal respect to all religions).

The opposition party also asserted that every single member of the INDIA alliance has immense respect for all faiths, communities and beliefs.

The assertion came amid a political row after DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin blamed ‘Sanatan Dharma’ for promoting division and discrimination among people and said it should be eradicated. Also, DMK leader A Raja reportedly said ‘Sanatan Dharma’ should be compared to diseases such as AIDS and leprosy that have a social stigma attached to them.

Also Read | MK Stalin Defends Son In ‘Sanatan Dharma’ Row

Asked about comments by leaders of ally DMK, Congress’ media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said, “The Congress has always believed in ‘sarvadharma sambhav’ wherein every religion, every faith has its space. No one can treat any particular faith as less than another faith. Neither the Constitution allows this nor the Indian National Congress believes in any of these comments.”

“If you know the history of the Indian National Congress you would know that we have always maintained (this stand) and you will find the same principles in the Constituent Assembly debates and the Constitution of India. There can never be a rethink on the Constitution as far as the Congress is concerned,” he said.

Pressed further as to why the Congress had not condemned the remarks, Khera said, “I just said we do not agree with such comments.” Asked if the Congress would raise this with its ally DMK, Khera said there is no need to raise these issues because “we know for a fact that each one of our constituents also respects every religion”.

“Now if you want to twist anybody’s remarks, they are free to do so. If it suits the PM let him twist those remarks but every single member of the INDIA alliance has immense respect for all faiths, communities, beliefs and religions,” he said.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

Madurai:

Droupadi Murmu, who belongs to a tribal community, was made the President and first citizen of the country and that is Sanatan Dharma, the Tamil Nadu BJP said on Wednesday.

Seeking to rebut DMK leader and Tamil Nadu Youth Welfare Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin’s accusation that Ms Murmu had not been invited to the new Parliament building’s recent inauguration and that showed Sanatan’s “discriminatory” practice, state BJP president K Annamalai wondered why the DMK did not vote for her.

“Why the DMK did not vote in support of her in the Presidential election?” he questioned.

Asserting that all castes are equal, he said, to counter the DMK and for the sake of argument, he was asking Tamil Nadu’s ruling party about the candidate it supported.

“You (DMK) voted for Yashwant Sinha (against Murmu); to which community does he belong?” Annamalai asked during his interaction with reporters at Srivilliputhur near here.

“We the people of the country made her the President and that is Sanatan Dharma; why did you not vote in her favour?” he said.

The BJP leader also questioned if the DMK voted in favour of Ram Nath Kovind from the Scheduled Castes community.

“We, the believers of Sanatan Dharma, voted for him as we believe that all are equal. Learn about Sanatan Dharma from us and Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he added.

On Tuesday, Udhayanidhi Stalin, asked by reporters to give an “example” to Sanatan’s discriminatory practices that he opposed, said the “best example is Droupadi Murmu not being invited to the inauguration of the new Parliament building, that is the best current example”.

Even if Udhayanidhi had spoken about “eradicating” any other religion, his party’s would have been the first voice against it, Mr Annamalai said. Similarly, he was opposing Udhayanidhi’s comment against Sanatan Dharma, he added.

The BJP leader said for decades, the DMK has been levelling the very same allegations and making foolish accusations.

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)