New Delhi: Asking Congress president Rahul Gandhi not to play with the faith of millions of people of the country, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday said that the Congress leader’s comments on Hindutva were “shocking” and humiliating for the majority community.

The BJP claimed that Mr Gandhi’s comments indicated that he was an “ichchhadhari (shape-shifting) Hindu” who became janeu-dhari (one who wears the sacred thread) for political convenience. The ruling party said the Congress president becomes a “janeu-dhari Hindu” and then claims that his party was a “Muslim party” as per his “appeasement politics”.

Mr Gandhi interacted with journalists in Hyderabad where he reportedly replied that he did not believe in any kind of Hindutva, soft or hardcore, when asked whether he was adopting the soft Hindutva stand to appease the majority community.

Quoting the Congress president’s purported remarks, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra said Mr Gandhi’s remarks have humiliated the majority community of the
country.

Citing Congress leaders remarks made during the Gujarat Assembly polls that their party president was not a “sadharan (ordinary) Hindu” but a “janeu-dhari Hindu” and Mr Gandhi’s visits to temples, the BJP said Mr Gandhi’s comments have proved that it was a “temporary janeu” (sacred thread) which he wears and removes as per his suitability for appeasement.

The BJP leader also brought up the purported remarks made by Mr Gandhi at a Mus-lim Intellectuals’ meet. The Congress had vehemently denied that Mr Gandhi had made such statement.

“One can understand if you say you don’t believe in fanaticism but to voluntarily say that you don’t believe in Hindutva, is shocking,” said Mr Patra adding that the Congress president does not believe in Hindutva but in Bangladeshi infiltrators and Rohingyas. The

BJP leader said that the country knows very well that the Congress is anti-Hindu when in 2008, Mr Gandhi had reportedly told the then US Ambassador that he did not feel threatened by the LeT but from Hindus and then the Congress leaders coined the term Hindu
terror.

When asked for comments, Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said he would not respond to “theatrics” of a BJP leader “who often exposes himself to ridicule for publicity.”