New Delhi: Days after Congress leader Salman Khurshid stirred a controversy by drawing a parallel between Hindutva and ISIS and Boko Haram, his home at Nainital was vandalised and set on fire on Monday.
According to eyewitnesses, the miscreants had a BJP flag in their hands and were raising communal slogans. They also pelted stones before setting the house on fire.
Salman Khurshid is a lawyer, writer and former Foreign Affairs Minister of India. His father too was a minister in Union Cabinet, and maternal grandfather, Dr Zakir Hussain, was the third President of India.
Salman Khurshid has been the target of some Hindu organisations after he compared Hindutva with radical Islamist groups like ISIS and Boko Haram in his book, "Sunrise Over Ayodhya: Nationhood in Our Times".
Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi has also drawn a difference between Hinduism and Hindutva.
He had said:
"There is a difference between Hinduism and Hindutva, because if there was no difference, the name would have been the same. In today's India, the BJP and RSS have spread hatred while the Congress has spread brotherhood and love."
Mr @salman7khurshid ’s residence in Nainital vandalised… Mr Khurshid shared details of the incident on his Facebook account pic.twitter.com/f6HP6kH9GD— Supriya Bhardwaj (@Supriya23bh) November 15, 2021
Mr @salman7khurshid ’s residence in Nainital vandalised… Mr Khurshid shared details of the incident on his Facebook account pic.twitter.com/f6HP6kH9GD
Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar went a step further on the issue, saying eighty per cent Indians who believe in Hinduism are real Indians and the rest of the people are non-Indians.
Aiyar said:
"There is a difference between Hinduism and Hindutva. I would like to add that those who believe in Hinduism are hundred per cent Indians. All of us, who are residents of this country are Indians. "But there are some people in our midst, and are in power today, who say only 80% people who practice the Hindu religion are real Indians. "The rest are non-Indians. They are living in India as guests. We will drive them out from here whenever we wish."
"There is a difference between Hinduism and Hindutva. I would like to add that those who believe in Hinduism are hundred per cent Indians. All of us, who are residents of this country are Indians.
"But there are some people in our midst, and are in power today, who say only 80% people who practice the Hindu religion are real Indians.
"The rest are non-Indians. They are living in India as guests. We will drive them out from here whenever we wish."
A Delhi-based lawyer has also filed a complaint against Khurshid for comparing Hindutva with ISIS and Boko Haram.
Former Chief Minister of Jammu Kashmir Mehbooba Mufti too later joined the debate saying Sanatan Dharma teaches inclusivity, and the RSS and BJP are antithesis to that.
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