BJP president Amit Shah on Monday launched a scathing attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for supporting JNU students charged with sedition, saying he lacked “national interest”.
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Shah wondered if the Congress leader had “lent his voice to the separatists”. Rahul himself has sent out a clear message to the party that there was no need be defensive, no matter how forcefully the BJP tries to mislead the nation by misrepresenting facts to show that the questions involved were about patriotism and Afzal Guru.
He said that though the Prime Minister had announced many programmes, including Make in India and many others, he has not cared to discuss anything with the poor citizens or the labourers.
Gandhi, Shah said, must apologize for igniting “anti-national activities” at the Jawaharlal Nehru University.
Singh on Sunday claimed the event at JNU to protest the hanging of Parliament attack convict Afzal Guru had received support from LeT founder Hafiz Saeed. Anti-India slogans were reportedly raised at the gathering.
The violence broke out when JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar against whom a sedition case has been filed was to be heard. Kumar has denied the charge. “This had last happened during Emergency”, Yechury tweeted while the CPI(M) politburo condemned the arrest of students and said that an isolated incident is being blatantly used as an excuse to clamp down on the progressive and democratic student movement. “When the entire country was praying for the Siachen soldier (Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad), some JNU students were raising slogans against India”.
Earlier, scuffles broke out as lawyers shouting “Bharat Mata ki Jai” ordered JNU students and journalists out of the courtroom as well as the court premises. “Long live India, shut down JNU”, they screamed, pushing students and teachers out.
“Today is a black day for India’s democracy when Deputy Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Anand Sharma was publicly attacked with sharp-edged weapon by government protected ABVP goons on the JNU campus.
Congress general secretary Dr CP Joshi, senior party-leader Avinash Pandey, APCC president Anjan Dutta, State PWD Minister Ajanta Neog, Agriculture Minister Rakibul Hussain, former Minister Rajib Lochan Pegu, Jorhat MLA Raja Goswami, Mariani MLA Rupjyoti Kurmi and many other Congress leaders were also present in the meeting at Titabor.
Swords were drawn between BJP president Amit Shah and Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi over the raging nationalism versus anti-nationalism debate.
The National party is focusing on the Northeastern state that is due for assembly polls in two months and hopes to counter the RSS-backed BJP that has made inroads into Congress strongholds. Party’s chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala told reporters it is ironical that those who are “inheritors of the thought process of Nathuram Godse” are giving new definition of patriotism and love for the nation.
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He said the Congress has a history of fighting terrorism and its leaders have made the supreme sacrifice for the unity and integrity of the country.
