The Congress MP said that he did not receive an invitation to attend Ram Temple inauguration, but said that he will visit the temple, but not on January 22.
Team Clarion
CHENNAI — The consecration ceremony of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya has been preponed to January 22 by the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi just to take political mileage ahead of the general elections, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has said.
Addressing the 54th annual meet of Thuglak – the Tamil magazine edited by RSS ideologue S. Gurumurthy – as chief guest on Sunday, the Thiruvananthapuram MP said that the temple was still under construction. “The inauguration of an incomplete temple on January 22 is a date chosen by a prime minister for his own political benefit ahead of the elections. Therefore to go there for that function where the starring role is given to the prime minister, and the priests, pujaris, and purohits are merely playing supporting roles in a temple that is still under construction, is to many of us a troubling act. It is a purely political act. I would live to see politics and Hinduism kept separate from each other. I don’t believe that ours is a religion that prescribes any role for politicians.”
The MP said that he did not receive an invitation to attend the temple’s inauguration, but said that he will visit the temple, but not on January 22. This comment led to protest from some audience members, media reports said.
At the event, the MP expressed his views on the divide between north and south India, Hindi imposition, anti-Muslim rhetoric, delimitation and the erosion of state-right, among others pressing issues.
Tharoor faced flak for participating in the event at the Music Academy. The MP said, “I will be speaking of my convictions and vision of India, not theirs. We need to reach out to those who do not share our views. Isn’t that what democracy requires — debate across the political divide?
Speaking at the event, Tharoor said, “I do worry about the Hindi-Hindutva-Hindustan politics of this (Union) government. Because this culture of Aryavrat domination that infects the attitudes of some has already raised disquiet among many, many southern politicians. Maybe Mr. Gurumurthy here and others may not feel that this is a big issue, but I definitely feel that this is a serious issue because the financial and political consequences threaten the very unity of India. If the south faces disenfranchisement along with a sense of victimisation, then that combination is bound to generate resentments.”
Responding to an allegation by an audience member that the INDIA alliance had been made to “bring Muslims to power”, Tharoor replied: “The INDIA Alliance was made to bring Indians to power. I want to remind you all that Muslims are also Indians. We should not forget that one of our great strengths as a society is that we appreciated people from all sorts of backgrounds.”
