Ashok Gehlot accuses BJP-RSS of distorting history, criticises Centre's handling of farmer protest
Jaipur (PTI): Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday alleged that members of the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) have launched a campaign to distort the historical facts of the country's freedom struggle.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge had remarked that those who distort history will never be able to make history, Gehlot noted.
"The people of the BJP-RSS have launched a campaign to tamper with the freedom struggle and its historical facts," Gehlot said on X.
He added that there are numerous examples, both in history and the present, where organisations with similar ideologies that came to power attempted to rewrite history with false facts but were ridiculed by historians.
The Congress leader also said that leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru, Sardar Patel, Bhagat Singh and Maulana Azad made special contributions to the freedom struggle, which have been written in golden letters in history and will remain indelible.
"No matter how much they try to distort it, they will never change the truth," Gehlot said.
He also drew a parallel with Pakistan and Bangladesh saying, "When Zia-ul-Haq came to power in Pakistan, he started rewriting the history of the country and wrote in the books that Pakistan was victorious over India in the 1971 war. The same is being done in Bangladesh now where efforts are being made to remove the name of Sheikh Mujiburahman from the freedom struggle of Bangladesh. Such efforts are destroying the credibility of these countries in the world."
Gehlot also accused the Centre and the Punjab government of being indifferent to the health of farmer leader Jagdeep Singh Dallewal.
"It has been 51 days now since farmer leader Shri Jagjit Singh Dallewal has been on a hunger strike. His health is continuously deteriorating. During this period, the Central and Punjab governments have shown complete insensitivity," he said.
Gehlot added that this was the reason why 111 other farmers had also been forced to go on a hunger strike to bring attention to their demands.
He said that the government listened to them after about 700 farmers lost their lives in protest against the three black farmer laws.
"It is beyond understanding why such a situation arises again and again and why the government does not want to find a solution by talking to the farmers' delegation," he said.
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Catholic Bishops' body slams Bhagwat's remarks
New Delhi: The Catholic Bishops' Conference of India on Thursday slammed RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat for his reported remark that Pranab Mukherjee, when he was President, had said tribals would turn "anti-national" if there is no "ghar wapsi"Catholic Bishops.'
In a statement issued here, CBCI, a body of Catholic Bishops, referred to reports which said Bhagwat, at an event on Monday, claimed that Mukherjee, while he was President had appreciated ghar wapsi and told him that had it not been for the Sangh's work on reconversion, a section of Adivasis would have turned "anti-national".The CBCI called the report "shocking".
"Fabricated personal conversation being attributed to a former president of India and its posthumous publication with the vested interest of an organization with questionable credibility raises a grave issue of national importance," the CBCI claimed.
"Is it not the violent ghar wapsi program of VHP and other similar organizations, curtailing the exercise of freedom of conscience of economically deprived tribals, the real anti-national activity?" it asked.
'Ghar wapsi' is a term used by the RSS and affiliated organisations to refer to reconversion of Muslims and Christians to Hinduism, based on the belief that they were originally Hindus before converting to other religions.
The CBCI also questioned why Bhagwat did not speak about it while Mukherjee was alive.
"We, the 2.3 percent of Indian citizens who are Christians feel extremely hurt by such manipulated and motivated propaganda unleashed," it said.
In a post on X following the statement issued by CBCI, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien said, "Speak up. This is a start!"
"Bishops body have issued a statement condemning remarks made by Dr Mohan Bhagwat and RSS for defaming the Christian community," he said.
O'Brien added that they should ask Prime Minister Narendra Modi more questions, including why Christmas Day has been turned into "Good Governance Day".
The TMC leader, in a blogpost earlier this month, had said "hard questions" must be asked to the government with regards to the Christian community, including why the FCRA has been 'weaponised', and why has Manipur been 'ignored'.
