Mangaluru: Dakshina Kannada district Congress committee demanded the BJP government to file a sedition case against MP Anantkumar Hegde for his remarks against Mahatma Gandhi and the freedom movement.
Addressing the reporters here on Tuesday, February 4, district Congress president and MLC Hareesh Kumar said, “Hegde had insulted Mahatma Gandhi by saying that the Mahatma Gandhi-led freedom movement was a drama. No Indian doubts the contribution of Mahatma Gandhi to our country and he is the only person to be called ‘Rasthrapita’. But Hegde had suspected Gandhi’s freedom movement and called it a ‘drama’. If Hegde has guts to question the contribution of Mahatma Gandhi, he should remove Gandhi’s statues and monuments from his constituency.”
Hareesh Kumar lamented that Hegde had made controversial remarks on previous occasions while the BJP high command did not take any disciplinary action against him. “When Hegde made statements in favour of Nathuram Godse and against the Muslim community, no action was taken against him. He asked the Hindus to cut the hands of Muslims if they dared to touch Hindu girls. He was left free even though he dared to assault a doctor and progressive thinkers. If the BJP had taken disciplinary action against him or prevented him from contesting in the Lok Sabha election, he would have changed his attitude. But Hegde did not learn any lesson for his previous mistakes and continued his behaviour till today. The BJP should expel him from the party and send him behind bars immediately,” he stressed.
Rubbishing the allegations made by MP Nalin Kumar Kateel that the Congress was the reason for the delay in the completion of the Pumpwell flyover, Hareesh Kumar said, “Nalin is blaming the Congress party to cover up for his mistakes. If the Congress is the cause, why is the four-laning work between BC Road and Adda Hole still not completed? Even though Nalin has been elected as the MP for the third consecutive term, he never did a single major work so far.”
Hareesh Kumar also sought Nalin’s stand on the Yettinahole drinking water project. Recalling Nalin’s statement that he would never allow the implementation of the Yettinahole project, he said, “Despite his promise, works on the project are still in progress. Nalin should reveal his stand on the Yettinahole project immediately.”
MLC Ivan D’Souza and other Congress leaders like Shahul Hameed, C M Mustafa, Sudheer T K and others were present.
