New Delhi: Union Minority Affairs Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Najma Heptullah has endorsed Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat's view saying that there is nothing wrong in calling all Indians Hindus.
The BJP leader's comments come days after the RSS chief received a huge flak from non-BJP parties for his suggestion that all Hindustanis are Hindus with many leaders wondering if he has read the Constitution and really believes in it.
"The cultural identity of all Indians is Hindutva and the present inhabitants of the country are descendants of this great culture," Bhagwat said.
Meanwhile, reacting to Heptuallah's statement, Congress leader Manish Tewari told ANI that Article 1 of Constitution talks of India as Bharat, therefore Indians are 'Bharatiyas' not Hindus.
Earlier Tewari had lambasted RSS chief and said Bhagwat would be well-advised to read the Constitution which very specifically states that India is Bharat, a union of state, and the word "Hindustan" is nowhere mentioned.
The RSS chief further went on to say that Hindutva is a way of life and Hindus could be of any religion worshipping any God or not worshipping at all.
Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray had supported Bhagwat's view, saying that there is nothing wrong in his remarks.
"I support the comments made by Mohan Bhagwat. When he says that India is a Hindu nation, what's wrong with it. Balasaheb Thackeray used to say the same thing for a long time. So how can we change our stand on the issue today?" Uddhav said.
Seeking to downplay the row over Bhagwat's comments, BJP leader Vinay katiyar said, "what he(Bhagwat) meant by 'Hindu' was 'Hindustani'. He never spoke about interfering in religious practices of people."
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