Mumbai, Aug 11 (IANS) Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Harshvardhan Sapkal on Tuesday claimed that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), the ideological parent organisation of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), opposed the national tricolour for many years.
He said the RSS considered the Tiranga inauspicious and had no role in the freedom movement. Even after Independence, the RSS did not hoist the tricolour at its offices for 50–55 years.
Sapkal said, “If they have now developed a love for the tricolour, that is certainly welcome; better late than never. However, there should not be any ulterior motive behind this on the part of the BJP and RSS.” He was speaking to the media after the party’s core committee meeting.
He alleged that the BJP government had failed at every level and that corruption had become rampant. Inflation has increased, farmers’ issues remain unresolved, unemployment is a major concern, and there are serious questions over law and order, but the government is paying no attention. To divert public attention, hatred is being spread in the name of caste and religion, he said, adding that the BJP was following a “divide and rule” policy.
The Congress, he said, would adopt an agitational approach to hold the BJP–Mahayuti government accountable.
Asked about the protest staged by BJP MPs in the Parliament complex over student protests in Jharkhand, Sapkal said the BJP’s protest was laughable. He alleged that when young people staged major protests at Jantar Mantar in Delhi and across the country over paper leaks, they were subjected to brutal lathi‑charges, pellet guns were used, cases were registered against hundreds of students, and girls were treated extremely badly.
“BJP MPs should have staged such a protest at that time,” he added.
Sapkal said LoP Rahul Gandhi had clearly stated that the lathi‑charge on student protesters in Jharkhand was wrong. He described Rahul Gandhi as “not a leader who runs away, but a leader who fights.”
He said the Opposition had consistently demanded a discussion in Parliament on the lathi‑charge against students. Still, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah were afraid to participate.
“A prime minister who has not held a single press conference in 12 years and Amit Shah, who shies away from debates, are the real leaders who run away,” he remarked.
Taking a jibe at BJP MP Ashok Chavan, who accused Rahul Gandhi of running away, Sapkal said that instead of facing reality, it was Chavan himself who had “run away” from the Congress party.
–IANS
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