Every saffron clad person is not BJP, says Gadkari

Ghulam Ali row: Oppose Pak govt, not artistes

On a day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke his silence over Dadri and its aftermath, his cabinet colleague Nitin Gadkari said the media had the habit of associating any saffronclad person''s comments to the BJP. '

'The media must realise that anybody who speaks anything that comes to their mind dressed in saffron clothes is not BJP'', the senior minister and former BJP chief argued.

He also clearly said that the cancellation of Ghazal singer Ghulam Ali’s show in Mumbai should not have happened though avoiding to blame the Devendra Fadvanis govt for the turn of events.

''After suffering three humiliating defeats, Pakistan has been resorting to proxy war with India. There is tension at the borders and many innocents are getting killed. As a result there is anger in the minds of the people but I think protests and anger should be directed towards the Pak govt and not artists.'' Gadkari went onto add that he himself was a big fan of the Ghazal maestro and listened to his music every morning without fail during his exercise session.

Coming back to Dadri and the politics following the incident, Nitin Gadkari reiterated that the Narendra Modi govt was committed to its promise of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas and there was no question of discrimination in any field of life with any member of the minority community.

When pointed out that despite his claims MPs, MLAs and leaders of the BJP had given provocative and objectionable statements on the lynching and beef eating, Gadkari admitted that there were indeed some elements who continued to defy the party’s top leadership.

''When I was president and even after that we have been repeatedly stressing upon our leaders not to speak out of turn and refrain from making provocative statements. However, you must understand that ours is not a mother-son party or father-son party. We are a democratic party. The BJP was never Vajpayee’s party or Advani’s party nor is it Modi''s party. We have a democratic set up…. despite our reminders some elements still remain. But has the BJP president said anything? Have any of the top leaders or ministers said anything objectionable? The BJP does not like to lay politics on anyone''s caste or religion and there is no question of discrimination with anyone in the country'', Gadkari emphasised.