Why is Rahul Gandhi visiting temples in Gujarat
"The day ends well with garba in Rajkot," the Congress vice president had tweeted.
Rahul Gandhi wrapped up his three Gujarat, but before doing so he offered prayers at four temples on Wednesday. It looked as though he was showcasing soft Hindutva and his party said that this was aimed at countering the RSS and BJP.
However, the ruling BJP took a dig at Gandhi, saying the Congress vice president was visiting temples as his party has failed to win elections in the state for long time.
In New Delhi, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram deprecated attempts at reading any political meaning into Gandhi's visit to temples.
Gandhi, who had kicked off his tour after offering prayers at the Dwarkadhish temple on Monday, resumed his road-show on Wednesday by trekking up the famous Chotila temple in Surendranagar district.
Starting his tour from Rajkot on Wednesday morning, Gandhi came to Chotila, the first stop, and began the steep climb immediately. He climbed around 1,000 steps in about 15 minutes without a break.
After he had offered prayers, the priests apprised him of the importance of the shrine. The Congress leader climbed down the stairway in another 15 minutes, greeting devotees on his way back.
In the evening, Gandhi visited Khodal Dham temple in Kagvad village to offer prayers to Khodiyar Mata, the reigning deity of the Leuva Patel community. A section of Patels are up in arms against the state's BJP government over their demand for reservation in government jobs and educational institutions.
On his arrival, Gandhi was greeted by a large number of Patidars, who chanted their signature slogan - 'Jai Sardar, Jai Patidar' to welcome the Congress leader.
On his way to Jetpur from Kagvad, Gandhi also paid a visit to a temple dedicated to Dasi Jeevan, revered by Dalits and Buddhists.
He also made an unscheduled visit to another shrine-- Jalaram temple--in Veerpur in Rajkot district.
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"I don't think you should read political meaning into that. I think there is much else that is happening in his visit to Gujarat. I think we should focus on that," Chidambaram said in the national capital.
"We have always held that each one is entitled to practice his own faith, we treat all faiths equal. That is the position of the Congress party. From the days of Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, that is the stance of the Congress party," he said, while dismissing suggestions that the temple visits were an attempt to woo Hindu voters.
Commenting
on
Rahul
Gandhi's
visit
to
temples,
Gujarat
Congress
spokesperson
Manish
Doshi
said
the
party
was
deliberately
projected
as
anti-Hindu
by
the
BJP
and
the
RSS.
"Rahul
Gandhi's
visit
to
various
temples
during
his
tour
is
aimed
at
countering
the
hardline
Hindutva
campaign
of
BJP
and
RSS,"
Doshi
said.
"The RSS and BJP have deliberately tried to portray the Congress as anti-Hindu, which is not true," he said.
AICC spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil said, "Our idea of secularism is different from them (BJP), as we visit religious places of all the faiths. This is nothing new. Our former PM Indira Gandhi used to do the same."
However, a state BJP leader said Gandhi was visiting temples as his party was not winning elections."
"Rahul Gandhi has started visiting temples and shrines as his party is not winning elections in any state," state BJP spokesperson Raju Dhruv said.
On Tuesday, Gandhi also attended a garba event organised by MLA Indranil Rajyaguru in Rajkot and performed 'aarti' in front of the idol of goddess Durga.
"The
day
ends
well
with
garba
in
Rajkot,"
the
Congress
vice
president
had
tweeted.
On
his
way
from
Chotila
to
Kagvad,
Gandhi
addressed
people
at
some
places.
In
his
speeches,
he
promised
that
the
Congress
would
waive
all
farm
loans
within
10
days
of
assuming
power
after
the
elections,
which
are
due
later
this
year.
OneIndia News