New Delhi: Congress on Wednesday defended its vice president Rahul Gandhi after reports regarding his religion started doing the rounds. According to reports, Rahul Gandhi was registered as a non-Hindu visitor at the famous Somnath temple in Gujarat. The party held it as an aide’s mistake and a BJP conspiracy ahead of polls in the state. The apparent “slip” ignited a storm on Twitter with ‘Somnath Temple’ emerging as one of the top trends of the day.
“We have no qualms in saying that Rahul Gandhi is a Hindu. Not only is Rahul Gandhiji a Hindu, he is a ‘janeu dhari’ Hindu. BJP should not bring down the political discourse to this level,” Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala lashed out.
The Congress vice president started a two-day campaign in the Saurashtra region with a visit to the renowned temple. A media coordinator, Manoj Tyagi, apparently signed the entry in a register meant for non-Hindus who need special permission to step into the temple. The Congress alleges that the name “Rahul Gandhiji” was added by the BJP.
Skewered on social media, the Congress produced a screenshot of Rahul Gandhi’s handwritten note in the visitors’ book as proof that he never listed himself as non-Hindu, that the writing was not his.
Congress leader Deependra Hooda accused the ruling BJP of organizing a “fake register” to discredit their leader. “Everyone knows Rahul Gandhi is a shiv bhakt (devotee). The BJP is doing what it does best, diverting from real issues,” said Hooda, holding up Rahul Gandhi’s signature.
The party also tweeted with the trending hashtag: “There is only one visitor’s book at #SomnathTemple that was signed by Rahul Gandhi. Any other image being circulated is fabricated.”
The Congress leader’s temple visit and Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s caustic response amped up the Gujarat campaign as both crisscrossed the Saurashtra region.
PM Modi, addressing an election rally in Prachi, around 25 km from Somnath, sought to remind Rahul Gandhi that Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first prime minister and his great-grandfather, had opposed the idea of building the Somnath temple.
Rahul Gandhi has visited several temples over the last few weeks as part of his “Gujarat Navsarjan Yatra”. The ruling BJP has ripped into his “temple run” as a sign of desperation in a state where the Congress has been out of power for over two decades. Responding to criticism, the Congress leader said: “I am a devotee of Lord Shiva. Let them say whatever they want to say. My truth is with me”.
