Abdullah: BJP using Ram to whip up religious sentiments
LUCKNOW: National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah on Saturday said the BJP had unleashed a propaganda campaign by using the name of Lord Ram to whip up religious sentiments ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
“It is not Lord Ram but the party’s own political leaders, who are facing danger (of losing elections). But Ram and Allah will not help them in winning elections,” he said.
“Lord Ram does not belong to Hindus alone. Just like Muslims refer to Allah as ‘rab-bul alameen’ and not rab-bul Muslimeen (God of the entire mankind and not Muslims alone), he (Lord Ram) is also revered by all,” Abdullah, who has served as CM of J&K several times, said during an interactive session ‘India, Today’ organised by All India Professionals Congress (AIPC) here on Saturday.
The veteran Kashmiri leader floored the audience with the way he took a volley of questions on subjects ranging from politics (including his son-in-law Sachin’s prospects in Rajasthan) to religion and problems facing the country, with his characteristic charm and candour.
On being introduced as a former chief minister, union minister, president of National Conference, Dr Abdullah was quick to point out that he was a singer and a dancer also.
On a serious note, though he said the country was passing through a very crucial phase as democratic values and institutions were being demolished.
“Our basic aim today is how to grab power and retain it at any cost and not to build the nation. This should serve as a wake-up call for all. Such type of politics is not going to change if good, educated professionals and people do not contest elections,” he said.
Occupying the quizmaster’s chair, Wajahat Habibullah, a former civil servant and a powerhouse of information himself on the history of the Valley, having done a considerable stint as a bureaucrat, pitched in with his own interesting inputs making the conversation absorbing.
On the Centre’s run-in with independent and constitutional institutions like the CBI, RBI, universities and Election Commission, Abdullah blamed the RSS. “The RSS wants to change the entire demography of the country. This is why they are trying to control and subvert these institutions, change the curriculum. But it is not going to help divert people’s attention from the real issues before the country,” he said. Asked to comment on his son in-law Sachin Pilot becoming the chief minister if Congress wins Rajasthan, Abdullah said, “You are opening the Pandora’s Box now. This decision will have to be taken by the Congress collectively if it wins.”
Earlier, president, AIPC, Uttar Pradesh unit, Amita Sinh delivered the welcome address while former IAS and state vice president of the organisation Anis Ansari read out the concluding note.