Rahul’s meeting with Tamil Nadu pastor triggers a row
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi came under attack from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday over a video of his “conversation” with controversial pastor George Ponnaiah, who was arrested last year for his alleged hate speech, during his Bharat Jodo Yatra in Tamil Nadu’s Kanyakumari district.
The Congress hit back and accused BJP of “mischievous lies”.
Gandhi’s conversation with catholic priest Ponniah and a few others on Jesus Christ began to be widely circulated on social media. When Gandhi asks whether Jesus Christ is a form of God, Ponnaiah is seen responding, “Jesus Christ is the real God. God reveals himself as a man, as a human person. Not like Shakti. So we see him as a human person born in this world.”
The BJP accused Rahul Gandhi of propagating “anti-Hindu” hatred while Congress responded saying it shows BJP’s desperation after seeing the response for the yatra.
BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla tweeted the video accompanied with a caption, “Bharat Jodo with Bharat Todo icons?” “This man was arrested for his Hindu hatred earlier – he also said, ‘I wear shoes because impurities of Bharat Mata should not contaminate us.’” Poonawalla tweeted.
Reacting to this, Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh said that this was BJP’s propaganda. “An atrocious tweet from the BJP hate factory is doing the rounds,” Ramesh tweeted in response. “It bears no relation whatsoever to what is recorded in the audio. This is typical BJP mischief that has become more desperate after the successful launch of Bharat Jodo Yatra which is evoking such a huge response.”
This was Gandhi’s third day of the party’s 3,570-km Bharat Jodo Yatra and the last leg in Tamil Nadu. The yatra started from Kanyakumari and is scheduled to end in Kashmir in 150 days by going through 12 states.
Pastor Ponnaiah has been known for making hateful speeches against other religions. He is also a consultant with an NGO Jananyaga Christhuva Peravai Amaipu in Kanyakumari. Last July, he apologised after his alleged provocative remarks on the Hindu religion became controversial while he was paying tributes to tribal rights activist Stan Swamy. Ponnaiah had then said that a two-minute video was edited out of his speech to make it appear as though he was being communal.
BJP’s Tamil Nadu leaders, including president K Annamalai, also criticised Gandhi over the meeting with Ponniah and the discussion. Annamalai called Gandhi India’s “divider”. “Elite walkathon with 60 air-conditioned caravans concluded in Kanyakumari after meeting Andolan Jeevi (some of whom were slapped sedition charges during UPA), anti-national and divisive elements of our society,” Annamalai said. “Rahul Gandhi was seen participating in a discussion where George Ponnaiah was demeaning Hindu Gods.”
Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Congress leader S Thirunavukkarasar on Saturday confirmed that Rahul Gandhi is their party’s Prime Ministerial candidate for the 2024 general elections. “He is the only contender for Modi,” Thirunavukkarasar told reporters. “BJP, Modi and Nadda or even Amit Shah cannot do such a yatra. Since Rahul Gandhi is the alternative, they will criticise us.”
