LUCKNOW: Terming it a fundamental assault on the Constitution of India, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said he has a problem with the current nationalism narrative that claims “hum haqdar hain, aur woh jo hain humla karne aaye they… (We have rights, they came to attack us)”, adding that there was no support for such an idea till the 1989 Lok Sabha polls.
Speaking at an event to launch the Hindi version of his book, the diplomat-turned-politician said, “I have a problem with Hindutva when it says ‘woh humare ghar me guss aaye hain bahar se (Outsiders have entered in our homes)’, while Hinduism talks about acceptance. Like Swami Vivekananda said, ‘I’ll respect your truth, you respect mine’, this is what Hinduism is.”
“Our Indian Constitution is similar to Hinduism, which clearly states you have the right to practise your religion and your tradition and there is no prohibition on it. You don’t bother us; we won’t bother you and we would live together. It’s up to you as to how you want to live. But when people propagating Hindutva say that they won’t tolerate as they have come inside our homes, this ideology is problematic, as it’s against our Constitution. It’s the need of hour to live in social harmony,” he said.
Speaking at an event to launch the Hindi version of his book, the diplomat-turned-politician said, “I have a problem with Hindutva when it says ‘woh humare ghar me guss aaye hain bahar se (Outsiders have entered in our homes)’, while Hinduism talks about acceptance. Like Swami Vivekananda said, ‘I’ll respect your truth, you respect mine’, this is what Hinduism is.”
“Our Indian Constitution is similar to Hinduism, which clearly states you have the right to practise your religion and your tradition and there is no prohibition on it. You don’t bother us; we won’t bother you and we would live together. It’s up to you as to how you want to live. But when people propagating Hindutva say that they won’t tolerate as they have come inside our homes, this ideology is problematic, as it’s against our Constitution. It’s the need of hour to live in social harmony,” he said.
