Daijiworld Media Network - Mangaluru (DV)

Mangaluru, Dec 20: Sri Rama Sene chief Pramod Muthalik on Saturday December 20 appeared in the second JMFC court here in connection with the 2009 pub attack case.

Speaking to reporters after appearing in the court, Muthalik lashed out at the state Congress government and said, "From 2009 till 2014, this (pub attack) case was dead, but now the Congress government with its anti-Hindu policies has reopened the case.

"This was expected as anti-Hindu policy is common for the state government. I am ready to face it," he declared.

"The state government has also reopened the 2008 church attack case and discarded the Someshekar Commission report with the intention to set up a new commission to probe the attacks. It is doing this to further its anti-Hindu policy," he alleged.

"For ten years, the Congress government at the centre had appeased minorities, hence this time it was thrown out by the people. But the Congress in Karnataka has not learnt this lesson," he added.

"No one had filed a case in connection to the pub attack, but the government filed a suo moto case," he said. Asked why it took so long for this case to progress, he said, "It was the responsibility of the government to file the chargesheet, but it could not do so as it knew there was no truth in the allegations and that it would not stand in court."

On mass conversion by Bajrang Dal

Referring to the controversial mass conversion by Bajrang Dal and other right wing outfits in Agra recently, he defended the act and said, "When Muslims and Christians are brought back into the Hindu fold, there is much talk, but when Muslims and Christians convert Hindus to their religions, why is there no controversy?

"If this has to stop, let the government bring about a policy to ban conversion. Then Christians will have to close their shops and Muslims will have to stop Love Jihad. What is the problem in going back to their own religion when their (Muslims' and Christians') forefathers were Hindus?" he said.

"Conversion is not new in Karnataka. VHP, Bajrang Dal, Arya Samaj and Sri Rama Sene have brought a small number of Christians and Muslims back to Hindu religion. From the last 10 years, Sri Rama Sene has brought 1,700 people to Hinduism. But when it is done in large numbers, it becomes a controversy," he added.

"Sonia Gandhi came to India as a Christian, and for 10 years she supported Christians throgh various central and state facilities. We have records to prove this, and we will fight against it," Muthalik said.

"In Indian history there is record of forced conversion. Now they are being re-converted," he added.

'Godse a patriot'

Echoing the controversial statements made by BJP MP Sakshi Maharaj a few days ago, Muthalik said that Nathuram Godse, who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi, was as much a patriot as Gandhi.

"Mahatma Gandhi was a patriot, and Godse too was a patriot You will know this if you read his autobiography. So, the assasination of Gandhi is a debatable issue," he said.

The hearing in the pub attack case was moved to January 27, 2015.