Facing criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for his 'Hindu Pakistan' remark, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has now been sued by a Kolkata-based advocate Sumeet Chowdhury on Friday, 13 July, for ''hurting religious sentiments and insulting the Constitution”. A Kolkata court has reportedly summoned the MP on 14 August.
Tharoor, on Thursday, had said that if the BJP wins 2019 Lok Sabha elections, it will lead to the formation of a 'Hindu Pakistan'.
A case under Section 153A/295A of the Indian Penal Code and Section 2 of The Prevention Of Insults To National Honour Act, 1971 has been filed against Tharoor by Chowdhury.
The counsel who moved this petition, in his complaint, said:
This has hurt the religious sentiments of the Indian citizens, insulted the Constitution and has been intended to create great conflict and disharmony based on religious divide.
While reports said the summon has been issued and has been allowed to be served to Tharoor through his Twitter handle by the counsel, when The Quint got in touch with him, Tharoor said he has “received nothing so far”.
This is the first time in the history of Indian judiciary that a summon will be issued through Twitter, Zee News reported the petitioner as saying.
In his complaint against the Thiruvananthapuram MP, the petitioner alleged that Tharoor has also insulted Indians by comparing an ‘Islamic State’ like Pakistan with a ‘Secular State’ like India.
The petitioner said that Tharoor has also insulted Indians by comparing an Islamic State like Pakistan with a secular State like India.
“He has also ignored the fact that India is a far superior nation compared to Pakistan, which most countries scorn and disdain,” Chowdhury said in his complaint.
Congress Snubs Shashi Tharoor Over His ‘Hindu Pakistan’ Remark
Even as Tharoor on Thursday, defended his remark, the Congress asked party leaders to exercise caution while “rejecting BJP’s hatred”.
Speaking at an event discussing the 'Threats faced by Indian Democracy and Secularism' on Wednesday, 11 July, Tharoor had said that India would become a "Hindu Pakistan", if BJP came to power in 2019.
“If they (BJP) win a repeat in the Lok Sabha, our democratic Constitution as we understand it will not survive, as they will have all the elements they need to tear apart the Constitution of India and write a new one,” Tharoor had said.
That new one will be the one which will enshrine the principles of Hindu Rashtra. That will remove equality for the minorities, that’ll create a Hindu Pakistan and that isn’t what Mahatama Gandhi, Nehru, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad and great heroes of freedom struggle fought for.Shashi Tharoor at an event on Tuesday
BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra poured scorn on the Congress leader, saying that the latter had once again “cattle-classed” Indian democracy.
“The Congress' character is that it crosses the 'Lakshman Rekha' (limit) in its hatred for Narendra Modi and the BJP, and in doing so, it assaults Indian democracy," he told reporters.
It is shameful to denigrate one’s own country, one’s own country’s democracy, to denigrate the Hindu religion time and again.Sambit Patra, BJP spokesperson
"This is a shameful act for which Rahul Gandhi should come out and not only apologise but explain to us why any leader of that party, whenever they open their mounth, they speak this way," he said.
Union Minister Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore said that the Congress MP's remark was “pure hallucination”.
“I think this is a symptom of the fact that they are neither in power nor do they see power coming their way again,” he said, adding that it was the Congress “that has infringed our Constitution and the freedom of citizens.”
Hours later, Tharoor shared photographs of his visit to Poonthura ShivaKshetram on Twitter, quipping, “Just before being accused of being anti-Hindu.”
Despite the BJP launching a scathing attack on Tharoor, the Congress leader stood his ground on Thursday and refused to apologise.
I don’t see what exactly I need to apologise for. I’m repeating what is on record from BJP and RSS. If they are no longer interested in the idea of the Hindu Rashtra, they must admit it. Until they do so, how can one apologise for reflecting their point of view accurately?Shashi Tharoor
On Friday, Tharoor took to Twitter and tweeted the song 'kuchh to log kahenge logon ka kaam hai kehnaa' from the 1971 hit film 'Amar Prem' to take on his critics.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, too, on Twitter cautioned the party leaders, saying that they must “realise this historic responsibility bestowed upon us while choosing words and phraseology to reject BJP’s hatred.”
Priyanka Chaturvedi, another Congress spokesperson, on the other hand, saw nothing wrong with Tharoor's remark, denying the suggestion that it was "embarrassing" in any manner.
“It's his personal stance. The Congress is very clear where it stands on this,” she told ANI.
(With inputs from ANI, Zee)
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