Kamal Nath has been frequently seen with Hindu religious leaders of late
Veteran Congress leader Aziz Qureshi has opened a front against his own party, slamming it for playing the Hindutva card and warning that "Muslims are not slaves who will act as per their orders".
The 82-year-old, who was served as Uttar Pradesh Governor, Madhya Pradesh minister and a Lok Sabha MP, made the strong remarks while addressing a gathering of Congress's Muslim leaders in Vidisha to mark the birth anniversary of former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.
"All parties, including the Congress, should understand that Muslims are not slaves or bonded labourers who will act as per their orders. Why should they vote for you when there are no jobs for them in the police, defence forces and banks? Why should they vote for you when they are not guaranteed bank loans?," he asked.
"Their shops, places of worship and houses are being burnt, their children are becoming orphans, they will tolerate to an extent. They aren't cowards. If it crosses the limit, there would be no harm in one or two crore out of 22 crore Muslims laying down their lives," he added.
Congress leaders, he said, are now talking about Hindutva. "They are chanting 'Jai Ganga Maiyya', 'Jai Narmada Maiyya', 'Garva se kaho Hindu hain', taking out religious yatras and installing idols at the Madhya Pradesh Congress office. This is shameful. I'm not afraid of being ousted from the party," Mr Qureshi said.
The state Congress unit attempted to play down the remarks. State party spokesperson KK Mishra said, "It's his personal opinion. The Congress believes in secularism and not in what he has reportedly said."
The ruling BJP, however, lost no opportunity in using the veteran Congress leader's remark to attack the party. "The statement clearly exposes that the Congress party believes in the politics of minority appeasement. Its leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Kamal Nath, turn to Hindus only in the poll season. Both Rahul Gandhi and Kamal Nath should come clear on Qureshi's provocative statements," said state BJP spokesperson Narendra Saluja.
Mr Qureshi's remarks come amid what has been described as Madhya Pradesh Congress's "soft Hindutva" push in the run-up to the Assembly polls due later this year. The party is determined to not lose Hindu votes to the ruling BJP and to counter the BJP's minority appeasement charge.
Mr Nath, seen as the face of the Congress campaign, has been frequently seen with Hindu religious leaders. Recently, he said it does not need to be said that India is a "Hindu Rashtra". "82 per cent of Hindus reside here. It is not a debatable issue. It is not something to be told. These are statistics. What is the need to say it separately?" he said.