BJP condemns Pragya's praise for Nathuram Godse, asks her to apologise
New Delhi, May 16: The BJP on Thursday condemned its Bhopal Lok Sabha seat candidate Pragya Singh Thakur's praise for Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse as "patriot" and asked her to tender a public apology.
"We completely disagree with her statement with regard to Mahatma Gandhi. We strongly condemn this statement. The party will seek clarification from her as to why she gave this. It would be proper for her to seek and tender a public apology for her objectionable statement," BJP spokesperson G V L Narasimha Rao said in a statement.
But she stopped short of an apology, despite BJP leaders calling for one.
"It was my personal opinion. My intention was not to hurt anyone's sentiments. If I've hurt anyone I do apologise. What Gandhi Ji has done for the country cannot be forgotten. My statement has been twisted by the media," she told news agency ANI.
Thakur, an accused in the Malegaon blast case, ignited a fresh controversy Thursday by claiming that Godse "is and will remain a patriot".
Talking to a news channel in Madhya Pradesh, she said, "Nathuram Godse was a deshbhakt (patriot), he is and will remain a deshbhakt. Those calling him a terrorist should instead look at themselves. They will be given a befitting reply in this election."
Thakur said this in response to a question over actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan's remarks that free India's first extremist was a Hindu, a reference to Godse.
This is not the first time her extreme views have embarrassed the BJP after it fielded her from Bhopal against Congress leader Digvijay Singh, projecting her as a "victim" of the UPA government's "fake Hindu terror" theory.
She was earlier forced to apologise after claiming that IPS officer Hemant Karkare, who was killed by terrorists during the 2008 Mumbai terror attack, died as she had cursed him after her arrest in Malegaon blast case.
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Trump’s fresh threat to bomb Iran amid reports of deal to end war
Washington (PTI): US President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened Iran with more bombing if it doesn't reopen the Strait of Hormuz, amid a report that the warring sides were nearing an agreement to end the war.
US media outlet Axios reported, quoting US officials and two other sources, that the US and Iran were getting close to a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war and set a framework for more detailed nuclear negotiations.
The US expects Iranian responses on several key points over the next 48 hours, Axios reported, adding that nothing has been agreed yet. This was the closest the parties had been to an agreement since the war began.
"Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
"If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before," Trump said.
According to Axios, the deal would involve Iran committing to a moratorium on nuclear enrichment, the US agreeing to lift its sanctions and release billions in frozen Iranian funds, and both sides lifting restrictions around transit through the Strait of Hormuz.
It said many of the terms laid out in the memo would be contingent on a final agreement being reached, leaving the possibility of renewed war or an extended limbo in which the hot war has stopped, but nothing is truly resolved.
