BJP national spokesperson and Member of Parliament Sambit Patra has launched a scathing attack on NCP-SCP leader Jitendra Awhad over his controversial remarks against Sanatan Dharma, calling the statement “an insult to the very soul of India.” Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Patra questioned the silence of senior NCP leaders Sharad Pawar and Supriya Sule, asking whether Awhad’s views represent the official stance of the party.
“Awhad claimed that Sanatan Dharma has destroyed India and that there was nothing called Sanatan Dharma. This is not just a political comment—it is an assault on the foundation of our civilisation. It targets the beliefs of the majority,” said Patra.
Drawing a sharp comparison, Patra added, “We are tolerant, and that is why we are expressing our protest through a press conference. But had such a statement been made about Islam or Muslims, the response wouldn’t have come through just words—it would’ve taken another form. Yet, Hindus are constantly painted as intolerant.”
Patra pressed for a public clarification from the top NCP leadership. “I ask Sharad Pawar and Supriya Sule—do you endorse this statement? Or will you disown it as a personal comment? Silence in this case will only be seen as complicity,” he asserted.
The BJP MP also linked the controversy to a larger pattern of what he described as “targeted attacks” on India’s cultural identity and majority population. “No country in the world tolerates its majority being vilified in this manner. And yet, those responsible then cry ‘intolerance’ when they are called out.”
Switching focus, Patra also trained guns on RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav, accusing him of voting from two different constituencies—an act that, if proven, would amount to a serious electoral offence.
“Tejashwi Yadav is rattled because we’ve raised uncomfortable questions. Did he vote twice? Did he lie in his 2020 nomination affidavit? These are not mere allegations—they go to the core of electoral integrity,” Patra alleged.
He further questioned what such an act, if true, implied about the conduct of party workers. “If the leader himself is indulging in questionable practices, imagine the scale of malpractice his cadre could be engaged in.”
Patra’s remarks come amidst a week of escalating political tensions following the acquittal of all accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case and rising ideological clashes over historical narratives, religious identity, and alleged infiltration in voter lists across several states.
