PTI
Ahmedabad, December 17
Adding fuel to fire in the recent conversion-row, working president of right-wing organisation Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), Pravin Togadia said ancestors of Indian Muslims and Christians were Hindus.
“The ancestors of Indian Muslims were Hindus. The ancestors of Christians were Hindu too. History says that many people converted to Islam due to atrocities and by the force of the swords of Moghul emperors,” Togadia said last night at the golden jubilee celebration of VHP at Bhavnagar town in Gujarat.
“At present, in this India, there is no atrocity or force on Hindus. In such a situation, if someone wants to return to the Hindu society, the Hindus should accept him whole heartedly,” added Togadia.
United Opposition forces RS deadlock for third day
PTI
NEW DELHI, December 17
Deadlock continued for the third day in Rajya Sabha on Wednesday with a united opposition insisting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should reply to a debate on communal incidents which was not acceptable to the government.
Congress member Hanumantha Rao was asked to withdraw from the House for the day by Chairman Hamid Ansari after he created ruckus.
Members from Congress, SP and Left stood up as soon as the House met for the day, demanding assurance that Prime Minister would be present during the debate listed for the day.
Government, however, said it was ready for a discussion and accused the opposition of disrupting the House. It said the issue relates to the ministry of home affairs and home minister Rajnath Singh would reply.
An unrelenting opposition kept raising the demand and created uproar leading to one adjournment during the Zero Hour and three during the post-noon Question Hour.
Amid uproar, Chairman Hamid Ansari named Congress member Hanumantha Rao under rule 255 and asked him to leave the House. He along with other opposition members was raising slogans in the Well despite warnings by the Chair.
Naresh Agarwal (SP) raised a point of order demanding that Prime Minister should reply in Parliament and not at BJP Parliamentary Party meeting to announce policy decisions when session was on and sought his reply to the debate.
This prompted leader of the house Arun Jaitley to say, "The Prime Minister has not announced any policy decisions in the party meeting. In the name of Point of Order, can Naresh Agarwal raise every day in the House a Point of Disorder?"
Sitaram Yechury (CPM) said since the opposition is being termed as "anarchist" he wanted to raise a 'Point of Disorder' if the Prime Minister was willing to come to the House to reply to the debate on the contentious issue of communal violence as that can end the deadlock.
"Will the Prime Minister come to listen to our discussion and reply to it? Then the country will know who are anarchists — we or they," he said.
Anand Sharma (Cong) said, "If the Prime Minister does not come, there will be no work in this House. This House will not run, let us make it clear."
Minister of state for parliamentary affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said, "Government is ready for discussion but opposition only wants disruption."
