Congress, the grand old party of India, lost a very important quality in the last few decades (especially after Sonia Gandhi took over as the Congress chief in the late 1990s), which is, ideological flexibility. Congress was formed in the late 1880s and remained relevant for more than 100 years because it changed ideological positions with the passing of every decade.
However, Sonia Gandhi clearly positioned Congress as secular, left of the centre party and Rahul Gandhi is following the same, leading to the downward spiral of the party in terms of electoral representation. The latest issue which proves the same is “Love Jihad”.
Love Jihad has been accepted as a real issue by the people across the political spectrum, judiciary of the country. Not only the Hindus but practitioners of other faiths, such as Christianity, Sikhism, Jainism, have complained about the rising number of Love Jihad cases. But, the Congress party is not ready to accept this as a real issue.
At a time the government of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh are planning to bring laws to deal with the rising cases of Love Jihad, and leaders like Himanta Biswa Sarma are regularly talking over the issue, Ashok Gehlot, the CM of Rajasthan, called it “manufactured by BJP”.
Love Jihad is a word manufactured by BJP to divide the Nation & disturb communal harmony. Marriage is a matter of personal liberty, bringing a law to curb it is completely unconstitutional & it will not stand in any court of law. Jihad has no place in Love.
1/— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) November 20, 2020
“Love Jihad is a word manufactured by BJP to divide the Nation & disturb communal harmony. Marriage is a matter of personal liberty, bringing a law to curb it is completely unconstitutional & it will not stand in any court of law. Jihad has no place in Love,” tweeted Ashok Gehlot.
They are creating an environment in the nation where consenting adults would be at the mercy of state power. Marriage is a personal decision & they are putting curbs on it, which is like snatching away personal liberty.
2/— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) November 20, 2020
“They are creating an environment in the nation where consenting adults would be at the mercy of state power. Marriage is a personal decision & they are putting curbs on it, which is like snatching away personal liberty,” he added.
According to Gehlot, the concern of Hindus, Christians against love Jihad and the vocal support of victims by the BJP leaders is merely a ploy to disturb communal harmony and fuel harmony. “It seems a ploy to disrupt communal harmony, fuel social conflict & disregard constitutional provisions like the state not discriminating against citizens on any ground,” he said.
It seems a ploy to disrupt communal harmony, fuel social conflict & disregard constitutional provisions like the state not discriminating against citizens on any ground.
3/— Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) November 20, 2020
Congress has already lost ground in the Hindi Heartland due to its anti-Hindu stance, presently it has a majority government in only two big states- Rajasthan and Chattisgarh. The CM of Rajasthan is making sure that the Hindus, who constitute around 90 per cent of the state’s population, are alienated from the grand old party, and it never comes to power to state again.
In fact, even Bhupesh Baghel, the CM of Chattisgarh, is playing very cleverly and has not spoken anything for or against Love Jihad. Moreover, he has proposed the construction of temples and religious tourism circuits in the state.
With the denial of Love Jihad, Ashok Gehlot is hurting not only in Rajasthan but throughout the Hindi belt. If Congress party continues to talk against the interest of Hindus, soon it will be extinct from the country, fulfilling Amit Shah’s dream of Congress-mukt Bharat.