There seems to be no end to the verbal duel between State BJP president Rajeev Bindal and Public Works Minister Vikramaditya Singh over the issue of a ‘true Sanatani’, with both leaders hitting out at each other over allegiance to Lord Ram.
“Bindal ji has now himself admitted that he has lived in Himachal for only 35 years. He is my senior and BJP Chief and I have full respect for him but he must also desist from making such objectionable statements,” said Vikramaditya on Wednesday. He said the BJP chief was nobody to certify whether one is a true Sanatani or not.
On Tuesday, Vikramaditya had lashed out at Bindal for terming the visit of Congress leaders to the Ram temple here as a political drama. “My 122 generations who have been living in Himachal have believed in Sanatan and worshipped Lord Ram. Congress does not need a certificate from Bindal, who is not even a bonafide Himachali and lived in Haryana till some time back,” the minister had remarked.
The minister said any party or individual was free to visit a temple and did not require BJP’s permission or certificate. “Jai Ram Thakur has termed Congress as anti-Hindu. I want to tell him we are not anti-Hindu but want a fair and impartial probe into the Ram temple fund scam,” he said.
Responding to Vikramaditya’s remarks, Bindal on Wednesday said to the people of Himachal that he had been serving the people of Himachal for the last 35 years. “Everyone is well aware about the anti-Hindu stance of the Congress which has been opposed to the construction of Ram temple merely because of politics of appeasement,” said Bindal.
“I do not require a certificate from you. The manner in which people of Himachal have rejected Congress in the urban local body and panchayat polls is before anyone. Do not take out your frustration on others,” he said.
Bindal said the people of Himachal wanted to know why Congress had not been able to fulfil the guarantees made to the people before the 2022 assembly polls even after more than three years in power.
The political slugfest over the Ram Mandir issue has intensified in the state, with both Congress and BJP engaged in a war of words over the matter to gain political mileage.