BJP slams Congress over Pitroda’s deleted X post on Ambedkar

PTI, Jan 28, 2024, 9:19 AM IST

The BJP on Saturday said that the Congress has once again exposed its ”anti-Dalit” face, as it accused Rahul Gandhi’s close aide Sam Pitroda of ”endorsing” Sudheendra Kulkarni’s views that Jawaharlal Nehru’s contribution to the making of the Constitution was more than that of B R Ambedkar.

BJP leaders shared a screenshot of Indian Overseas Congress head Pitroda’s now-deleted post on X in which he shared Kulkarni’s article on the issue and asked the Congress leadership if they also support such ”anti-Ambedkar” views.

Kulkarni, a former close aide of BJP veteran L K Advani, has in the article said that Ambedkar was not the maker of India’s Constitution and the contribution of Nehru was far greater in its framing than Ambedkar.

BJP leaders, including Union ministers, alleged that the Congress’ ”hate” for Dalits and Ambedkar is not new and the opposition party is still trying to ”erase his legacy” by endorsing the ”demeaning” article.

”Congress has an anti-Ambedkar DNA. The proof of the Congress’ anti-dalit thoughts has once again come out in the open,” BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla told reporters. He claimed that Dalits and tribals faced a lot of atrocities during the Congress rule and asked Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, “How much more the members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes will be insulted”.

Union Minister for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal said Pitroda has claimed that it was Nehru who contributed more to the making of the Constitution than Ambedkar. “We vehemently condemn it and ask the Congress if it stands by his remarks,” he said on X.

”The entire world believes that BR Ambedkar had played the main role in the making of the Constitution and Pitroda’s remarks on his contributions are a reflection of the Congress’ mindset of insulting Baba Saheb,” he added.

Pitroda is speaking Rahul Gandhi’s “language” because the Congress and its leaders are not able “to digest” welfare and upliftment of Dalits under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, the minister charged.

”Bharat Yatri Sudheendra Kulkarni writes an article demeaning Baba Saheb Ambedkar. Rahul Gandhi’s mentor Sam Pitroda endorses it. They have been sponsored by the Congress to insult Dr Ambedkar, the chief architect of India’s Constitution and a revered Dalit icon,” BJP’s IT department head Amit Malviya said in a post on X.

”Congress despises Dalits. It has always marginalised Dalit leaders and looked down upon the Dalits. Congress is anti-Dalits,” he said.

Meghwal said Ambedkar was chairman of the committee set up to draft the Constitution and when the constituent assembly adopted it, one of the members of the drafting panel had said that it was because of Baba Saheb such a “big and great” Constitution could be drafted Union Minister Kiren Rijiju said, “I warn the Congress party to refrain from insulting Babasaheb Ambedkar again”.

“Congress hated and insulted Ambedkar ji when he was alive and after he is no more. Rahul Gandhi’s Advisers should know that Ambedkar ji is more than a leader for us. India has moved well beyond one family raj,” Rijiju added in a post on X ”Congress is anti-Dalit,” Malviya said in his post, while sharing a screenshot of Pitroda’s post.

”This is absolutely shocking! Rahul Gandhi’s close aide and mentor Sam Pitroda insults Baba Saheb Ambedkar, undermines his contribution to framing India’s Constitution, and like all things Congress, gives credit to Nehru.

”Congress’s hate for Dalits and Dr Ambedkar, an erudite man, who gave us our Constitution and worked for the upliftment of Dalits, is not new. Nehru ensured he was defeated twice and couldn’t enter the Lok Sabha.

”The Congress sought to erase his legacy then and is doing it even now. Despite his massive contributions, he was denied a Bharat Ratna. It was only in 1990 (34 years after his death), that a BJP supported Govt at the Center honoured him,” he said.

Pitroda in his post which was later deleted, had said, ”Who contributed more to the Constitution and its Preamble? Nehru, not Ambedkar.” Sudheendra Kulkarni has in a post also said, ”Who Contributed More to the Constitution and Its Preamble? Nehru, NOT Ambedkar.

”’Babasaheb ka diya hua Samvidhan — Dr Ambedkar is the Father of the Indian Constitution’ is the biggest falsification of our country’s modern history,” he said.

Speaking to PTI, he later said, ”It is generally believed that Dr B R Ambedkar was the father of the Indian Constitution. But, this is far from truth if you examine the facts of history. Now a study has shown that the contribution of our first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru was far greater than Dr Ambedkar. In fact, Ambedkar has himself said that it was not his Constitution.” Meghwal alleged that Congress has always been against Ambedkar and stopped him from being elected to Lok Sabha twice.

Poonawalla dubbed Pitroda’s remarks as “a lie” and asked Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge if his party leader “actually” expressed the ‘Mann ki baat’ of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.