Congress Leader Alvi Attacks BJP on Nanaji Deshmukh, Rally
New Delhi, October 24: Congress leader Rashid Alvi has accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of hypocrisy, focusing on a range of issues including foreign powers, the 1984 riots, and the INDIA bloc's planned rally.
Alvi began by responding to BJP national president Nitin Nabin's remarks about foreign forces. He urged Nabin to tell the country which foreign power was in contact with which individuals, and to name both the foreign power and those inside India who allegedly wanted to harm the nation. He said that if such people were known, the government should arrest them.
Alvi argued that the party's own record on foreign ties was questionable. He said that US President Donald Trump frequently makes statements on various matters, yet the government remains silent, and that the BJP has the strongest relations with America.
He also commented on Naseeruddin Shah's remarks about democracy. According to Alvi, when political debate spreads to youth and then to film personalities, it suggests that democracy is weakening and authoritarianism is strengthening in India.
On Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini's reference to the 1984 riots, Alvi said the Congress had already apologised for those riots and that no one had defended them. He added that RSS leader Nanaji Deshmukh had supported the riots in a letter and article, which George Fernandes, then NDA chairman, had published in a newspaper.
Alvi said the BJP should answer whether it agrees with Deshmukh's position or criticises it. Since the party had awarded Deshmukh the Bharat Ratna, he said, it should withdraw the honour if it does not endorse his views.
On the demand to postpone the INDIA bloc's November 1 rally, Alvi said the BJP was behind the letter making the demand. He asked why the police had granted permission if there was such a threat, adding that the police were not under Congress control and that the permission indicated the situation was normal.
Alvi further questioned the BJP's criticism of Rahul Gandhi, asking whether the BJP itself did not hold public meetings and rallies. He claimed the large crowds expected at the Congress rally reflected public frustration with the government and a desire to remove it from power.
Finally, responding to Farooq Abdullah's statement, Alvi said the BJP and the central government were anti-Muslim in their politics. He disagreed, however, with the claim that Pakistan was protecting Kashmiris, pointing out that people in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir were facing daily protests and sit-ins, and that demonstrations had even been held against Nawaz Sharif.