Daijiworld Media Network - Udupi (JD)
Udupi, Sep 12: Former minister and KPCC campaign committee president Vinay Kumar Sorake accused the BJP of using people from the Dalit community with a “Manusmriti mindset” to insult the Constitution of India.
He was speaking at a protest organised by the KPCC campaign committee in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue at Ajjarkad here, condemning the alleged purification of a venue where Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had delivered a speech.
Sorake alleged that the BJP was using Dalits to insult the Constitution drafted by Dr B R Ambedkar. He also criticised BJP national president Mahendra Bhatt for defending the alleged purification act, calling it unfortunate.
“Such developments are an attempt to take the country back to the 18th century. Inequality, discrimination and untouchability were not created by god; they were created by human beings,” he said.
He alleged that efforts were being made to exploit Dalits, who are among the original inhabitants of the country, in the name of untouchability. “It is unfortunate that the BJP is defending such acts even when thousands of Dalits continue to face injustice in the country,” Sorake said.
Questioning prime minister Narendra Modi's silence on allegations of misuse of funds related to the Ayodhya Ram Mandir, Sorake asked, “Where has prime minister Modi’s slogan ‘Na khaunga, na khane dunga’ gone?”
The protest began with the leaders garlanding the statue of Mahatma Gandhi.
Speaking on the occasion, Baindur block campaign committee president Dr Subrahmanya Bhat alleged that the BJP was attempting to create divisions among Dalits by using one section of the community against another.
He also accused the government of using the police to register cases against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. “The Congress will not be intimidated by such cases. No matter how hard the BJP tries, it cannot weaken the moral strength of the Congress and Rahul Gandhi,” he said.
Bhat further alleged that hired groups were brought in to suppress the protest and claimed that the Congress had never adopted such methods. He also accused the BJP of misleading Dalit organisation workers and using them against Dalit leaders, including Mallikarjun Kharge.
Former MP Jayaprakash Hegde said there was a need for people to embrace human values and live as true human beings. “It is unfortunate that instead of becoming more humane, we are becoming more like demons,” he said.
Taking a dig at those who allegedly purified the venue where Kharge had spoken, Hegde said, “It is not enough to clean the ground; their inner selves and mindset also need to be cleansed.”
He alleged that those who question the government by pointing out its mistakes are branded anti-national, while those who praise the BJP are projected as patriots.
During the protest, Sudarshan and his troupe rendered Raghupati Raghava Rajaram and Vaishnava Jana to as a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi.
Udupi District Congress Campaign Committee president Alevoor Harish Kini, Congress leaders Ashok Kumar Kodavoor, Ramesh Kanchan, Hariprasad Rai, Prakhyath Shetty, Jyothi Hebbar and others participated in the protest.