National

Voices Rise in BJP to Reach out to Minorities

The BJP leadership, as a consequence of poll dribbling, is eventually under fire from within to make the organization more inclusive to reach out to Muslims and other minorities.

The BJP leaders were asked by members of the national executive to make the party more inclusive even as the party adopted a resolution stressing its opposition to theorcracy and bigotry and LK expressed concerns over the “narrow and anti-Muslim” interpretation of the party’s doctrine of Hindutva.

“At our office-bearers meeting two days back, two eminent colleagues of ours affirmed their faith in Hindutva but cautioned against any narrow, bigoted, anti-Muslim interpretation being put on it,” Advani said.

Clearly, he was referring to Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Shahnawaz Hussain for their strong protest against Varun Gandhi’s hate speech in Pilibhit and party’s failure to stay aloof from Varun, as well as the “communal” campaign launched by BL Sharma Prem in Delhi North-East seat.

While Naqvi insisted that party must clarify its stand on the Pilibhit brand of Hindutva on the very day the genuineness of Varun’s hate speech was proved by forensic tests, another participant, referring to Varun, said: “The deliberations represented a repudiation of the Pilibhit brand of Hindutva.”

Participants termed the discussion as the most frank exchange of views on the issue so far.

Not just Muslim leaders Naqvi and Hussain, who took on Maneka Gandhi for strong defense of her son Varun, but also leaders from states like Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attributed the party’s win in last year’s state polls to the indiscriminate implementation of welfare schemes.

“Muslim women who benefited from our policies fought with their spouses to support us,” he said, stressing the need for an outreach towards Muslims and other minorities to address their concerns about the party.

His statement is signification keeping in view his differences, according to sources, with some people in Sangh Parivar who want his administration to take a more hardline stance on Hindutva.

Deputy chief minister of Bihar Sushil Modi spoke the same language and advocated to adopt a more inclusive approach.

“Modi said. He also said that writing off Muslims made no political sense either. “It puts off allies and gets Muslims to rally against the party,” he said.

Gopinath Munde said that party should not display any hostility towards Muslims and Christians for their opposition to the party.

“We have to try to take everyone along, but also realise that some people will not respond to us. We don’t have to treat them as enemies,” he said.

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