Obama at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Sunday. Picture by Ramakant Kushwaha
New Delhi, Jan. 28: The Congress today concealed its glee at US President Barack Obama's denouncement of religious sectarianism, and only said the Indian government shouldn't need a nudge from a guest to act against bigotry.
Although many Congress leaders received with great delight Obama's speech in which he said India will succeed only if it is not split on religious lines and stressed on the sanctity of religious freedom, the official line was subdued possibly because the party did not want to be seen as politicising a foreign dignitary's visit.
The Congress did not even bring up the subject at its two official briefings during the day.
Spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said: "The truth is that the RSS and its outfits attack our core constitutional ethos. The omission of the words 'secular and socialist' from the Preamble of the Constitution in the advertisement issued by the information and broadcasting ministry is a sacrilegious affront to that ethos. The government should tender an apology."
Surjewala pointed out that the Shiv Sena, an NDA ally, had now asked the government to delete the words. "How should our own people look at this is far more important than how a guest looks at it. The Prime Minister should explain how he intends to deal with these fundamentals of the Constitution and check the lumpen elements within the Sangh parivar who disturb the peaceful coexistence of our people," he said.
Arguing that the Congress epitomised the ethos enshrined in the Constitution, Surjewala further said: "We hope the Prime Minister was listening to the words of our guest and will do the necessary course correction."
Asked if Narendra Modi's repeated reference to the US President as Barack was in tune with Indian cultural and diplomatic norms, he said: "This question should be asked to the Prime Minister, though using respectful expressions in inter-personal relations is an integral part of Indian culture."
Other Congress leaders, however, grabbed the opportunity to attack Modi. Party general secretary Digvijaya Singh, in a series of tweets, asked Modi to take "his friend Barack's advice and ask his friends in VHP to shut up and request Mohan Bhagwat to stop justifying Ghar Vapsi."
Shashi Tharoor, often accused of a pro-Modi tilt in his arguments, said: "If some saw that (Obama's speech) as an implicit rebuke to the Hindutva brigades, it was at least a reminder that while Modi's past, which saw him endure a visa ban to the US for a decade, has been forgiven, it has not entirely been forgotten... The US supports the goals of Modi 2.0, but warns him he will fail if he reverts to Modi 1.0."
Writing for a news website, Tharoor argued: "Obama's message was pointed: if India did not resolve the problems that were dividing the country, Modi's proclaimed ambitious development plans would be thwarted. It is a message many of us in the Opposition have also been giving Modi. But coming from the US President, whose visit is being hailed by the government as a diplomatic triumph and whose 'bromance' with the Indian PM has seen first names and much friendly banter, it is a pointed reminder of the fundamental contradiction at the heart of Modi regime."
Tharoor said Modi had given free rein to the retrograde elements in Indian society after attracting voters on issues like development and economic opportunities. "Modi cannot be oblivious to this fundamental contradiction, but he can only resolve it by jettisoning the very forces that have helped ensure his electoral victory. He won't, of course, which is why Obama's pointed remarks were a necessary warning."
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