'Cong followed British in dividing on religion, caste'

Addressing a media conference, here, on Friday, along with writer Pradhan Gurudutt, writer S L Bhyrappa said, the Congress and the Left parties are unnecessarily misleading the people, to create unrest in the nation.

“I am 89 years old and have been a part of the freedom movement. I have seen the political developments since Independence. The Congress followed the British, in dividing the people on religion and caste, to create vote banks. The Congress has failed to be a constructive opposition now,” he said.

“The British divided Indians, by creating fear among Muslims, citing the example of Shivaji, who broke the Mughul supremacy in India. Initially, the British succeeded in dividing Bengal into East Bengal and West Bengal. Then, they projected Brahmins, Kayasthas and Vyshyas, who were spearheading the freedom movement, as forward castes and the others as the oppressed by ‘forward castes’,” Bhyrappa said.

“Since Mahatma Gandhi imposed Jawaharlal Nehru on India, as prime minister, the Congress held on to power, by adding fuel to the fear among Muslims and some Hindu castes. Now, that Prime Minister Narendra Modi is a big leader, the Congress is protesting all his moves, projecting him as communal, forgetting that the reputation and trade of India is at stake. However, they don’t have an alternative to Modi,” he said.

Student’s duty

Pointing at the protests by students against CAA, 2019, in Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and other institutions, he said, JNU has been misused by the Congress and Left parties since its inception.

“JNU, whose annual budget and grants exceed that of any other institution, is setting a bad precedent to students of other educational institutions. It is the tax-payers money. The primary duty of a student is to study. Are the protesting students doing it properly?” he asked.

“The students should demand for more books, good books in the library, for more equipment and instruments and better infrastructure in laboratories. Let the students demand for freedom of expression in classrooms, for freedom to question teachers on doubts in subjects, and for professors who encourage questions and interact in a positive way. Students should not resort to protests to help political parties,” he said.

“CAA, 2019, is clear that it is for victims of communal persecution in Islamic nations of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, who have arrived in India before December 31, 2014. In a bid to expand its vote bank, Indira Gandhi and Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed of Congress facilitated infiltration of Muslims from Bangladesh into Assam. For this, Ahmed was rewarded and made President. He is the one who declared Emergency at midnight to help Indira Gandhi, later. In a similar way, in West Bengal, the Left parties, which ruled for 34 years, also facilitated infiltration and the infiltrators spread across India,” he said.

“When a person like Modi takes up issues that were pending since six or seven decades, vested interests raise a hue and cry. Modi is a sanyasi and is doing good work in the interest of the nation. The vested interests were rendered helpless when Triple Talaq was abolished, when Article 370 and Article 35 A were abrogated. Now, as they were sure that their votes banks would support them, they are creating ruckus,” he said.