Co-operatives, Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation (Independent Charges) Minister Vishwas Sarang on Friday raked up a controversy by saying that those who love the nation would support the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and would vote for them.
Sarang while addressing gathering at a Antyodaya mela said, “There is no second thought that all those who love their nation would support the BJP and would vote for them. I said this thing and I stand by my words, that who loves BJP, loves the nation as well.”
Sarang further said that in past 70 years the Congress Party has nothing, but have betrayed the nation and have destroyed its unity and integrity. “This is not what I am saying. India's history supports my remark. If the BJP carries out a surgical strike and the Congress raises question on that, is that patriotismIJ” asked the minister.
Sarang also asked the audiences to raise their hands if they would vote for BJP and seeing a person not raising hand he repeatedly told the person to raise his hand in favor of BJP failing that he said to the audiences to check whether there is a Pakistani sitting near to that gentleman.
However, the Congress was quick to respond over Sarang’s statement and the state Congress spokesman Pankaj Chaturvedi reacting over minister’s statement said that Congress need not certificate of nationalism from the BJP whose role during the freedom movement of the country is known to all. “What the ancestors of BJP were doing the freedom struggle is very well known to the country and what it is doing now is seen by everybody in its IT cell activist Dhruv Saxena and company arrested on charges of spying for Pakistan’s ISI,” Chaturvedi added.