Does BJP’s Hindutva depend what Rahul Gandhi eats: Sena MP Sanjay Raut

The Shiv Sena recently slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over its brand of Hindutva politics and questioned if the BJP stands for Hindutva at all. Terming BJP’s Hindutva agenda as “fake”, Sena leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Raut asked if the BJP’s Hindutva is dependent on what Congress president Rahul Gandhi eats and drinks. Raut was referring to recent allegations that Gandhi ate chicken momos and chicken kurkure on his recent visit to Kailash - Mansarovar, Nepal.

In his weekly column in Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamna’, Raut said that the BJP is “keeping an eye” on people’s food preferences, while turning a blind eye towards issues such as building a Ram Temple in Ayodhya, introducing Uniform Civil Code and repealing Article 370.

“The BJP has alleged that Rahul Gandhi ate non-vegetarian food before his visit to Mansarovar. Is BJP’s Hindutva hanging on what Rahul Gandhi eats or drinks? This is an example of how the level of politics has fallen in the country. There is no harm in engaging in politics of religion, but by keeping an eye on what Rahul Gandhi eats, will India become a Hindu state?”

The Sena leader, in his article, also asked: “What is stopping Prime Minister Narendra Modi from declaring India as a Hindu nation?”

“None of the leaders in power today are ready to say when the Ram Temple will be built in Ayodhya. The Uniform Civil Code and repealing Article 370 are Hindutva issues, but there has been no progress on it,” he added. He attacked the BJP for banning beef consumption in some states under the garb of Hindutva, while accepting it in Goa and northeastern states for electoral gains.

Raut also took on the Jain community, claiming that Jains do not allow people who consume non-vegetarian food to reside in housing societies dominated by them. “It is a surprise that people from the Jain community do this. It is virtuous to earn money through dishonest means and construct buildings, but to disallow a house to people eating non-vegetarian food is religious behaviour. Rahul Gandhi eating non-vegetarian food is a crime, but non-vegetarians not being given a house is not a crime legally because BJP wants votes from the Jain community,” he said.

First Published: Sep 10, 2018 09:42 IST