Shashi Tharoor warns of 'Hindu Pakistan' if BJP wins 2019 elections; Sambit Patra demands apology

The veteran Congress leader claimed that the saffron party will tear apart the Constitution of India and make their own set of rules, if voted back to power.

NEW DELHI: India will turn into a “Hindu Pakistan” if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) comes back into power after 2019 Lok Sabha elections, said Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday, sparking a controversial row.

The veteran Congress leader claimed that the saffron party will tear apart the Constitution of India and make their own set of rules. 

"If they (BJP) win a repeat in the Lok Sabha our democratic constitution as we understand it will not survive as they will have all the elements they need to tear apart the constitution of India & write a new one," said Tharoor as reported by ANI.

“That new one will be the one which will enshrine principles of Hindu Rashtra, that'll remove equality for minorities, that'll create a Hindu Pakistan and that isn't what Mahatama Gandhi, Nehru, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad and great heroes of freedom struggle fought for,” he added.

Tharoor's tweet did not go down well with BJP leaders.

"Shameless @INCIndia doesn’t lose any opportunity to demean India and defame the Hindus! From “Hindu terrorists” to “Hindu-Pakistan” the Pak appeasing policies of Congress are unparalleled!." tweeted BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra.

Later, talking to ANI, he added, “Rahul Gandhi must apologise for what Shashi Tharoor said. Congress was responsible for creation of Pakistan because of its ambitions yet again it has gone ahead to demean India and defame Hindus of India.” 

Tharoor's remark came after Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack against Congress, blaming it for making false promises.

Addressing a rally in Punjab's Malout, the PM said, ''In the last 70 years, most of the times the party which our farmers placed their faith in did not recognize their hard work. Only false promises were made to farmers, and the party only worked for the interest of one family.''

With agency inputs