Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing a rally in Bihar's Purnea district
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today told the Congress to stop "lecturing on tolerance," ripping into the opposition party at an election rally in Bihar.
"Doob maro (drown in shame)... Try to remember that day in 1984 when Sikhs were being massacred in Delhi and all over India two-three days after Indira Gandhi was killed. There were serious charges against the Congress party and Congress leaders...," PM Modi said, referring to the anti-Sikh riots of 1984 in the days after the assassination of the former Prime Minister on October 31 that year.
"And today on November 2, Congress party is lecturing on tolerance," the PM said.
PM Modi's attack in the final lap of the bitterly fought Bihar election came hours before Congress president Sonia Gandhi was scheduled to meet President Pranab Mukherjee. Congress leaders said she would bring up with the President what it calls "rising intolerance" following incidents like attacks on rationalists and mob killings on the suspicion of beef-eating or cow slaughter.
The Congress's Anand Sharma responded swiftly to the Prime Minister's comments, criticising him for bringing up the 1984 riots. "The PM brought up a big tragedy that happened 31 years ago only for political gains," Mr Sharma said, alleging that "it is meant to divert attention from an orchestrated campaign to spread fear."
"The PM has still not addressed the concerns of thinkers," Mr Sharma said referring to a series of protests by writers, filmmakers and others who have returned prestigious awards or quit posts over "intolerance".
Sonia Gandhi had on Saturday alleged that, "organisations and people of a particular ideology are spreading hate to divide people," and vowed "We will not allow such a diabolical design to succeed."
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley shot back in a Facebook post, "While the government led by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is trying to accelerate India's growth, there are many who have never intellectually accepted the idea of the BJP being in power. This obviously includes the Congress, many Left thinkers and activists. Over decades they have practiced ideological intolerance towards BJP."
"Since 2002, the Prime Minister himself has been the worst victim of this ideological intolerance," Mr Jaitley said. He accused the Congress of working to a strategy to obstruct Parliament and stall reforms and also attempt "by structured and organised propaganda... to project India as an intolerant society".