Atishi had dropped her second name, Marlena — derived from Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin — last August. (PTI)Stressing that she is a “Kshatriya” from a Punjabi Hindu family, AAP’s East Delhi candidate Atishi Sunday asked if Congress president Rahul Gandhi was willing to apologise after a leader from his party falsely said she was “Jewish”.
Atishi had dropped her second name, Marlena — derived from Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin — last August, attributing her decision to a “whisper campaign” to brand her as a Christian. She had publicly shared her caste at the time. Atishi is pitted against Congress’s Arvinder Singh Lovely and BJP’s Gautam Gambhir.
“I have never used my caste surname. But since day one, the Congress’s desperation is apparent. It has now started making false allegations and indulging in politics of caste and religion. Their former Okhla MLA lied that I am a Jew. That has compelled me to say that I was born in a Punjabi Hindu family. My father is Vijay Singh, husband Praveen Singh and I am a Kshatriya. My parents come from a Left tradition, hence my second name was on Marx and Lenin,” Atishi said.
Congress’s former Okhla MLA Asif Muhammed Khan, who had made the statement at a gathering, said he stands by his remark: “I made the statement based on several social media posts. I wonder why AAP is repeatedly trying to burnish her caste credentials. They are supposedly against politics of caste and religion.”
Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had Saturday tweeted: “I am saddened that the Congress and BJP are together spreading lies on Atishi’s religion. They should be aware that Atishi Singh is her full name. She is a Rajput, a Kshatriya.” Atishi added that “the Congress’s attempts only indicate that it has already conceded defeat”.
“Lovely, in any case, is not sure if he is in the Congress or BJP. Congress knows that not a single anti-BJP vote will go to them. I want to ask Rahul Gandhi, will he publicly apologise or remove Khan from the party?” she said.
