Ludhiana: Congress’s ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ seems to be getting mired in more controversies. And this time, it is over the saffron-coloured turban that Rahul Gandhi wore as the march entered Punjab earlier this week.
BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya has posted a video on Twitter that purportedly shows the Wayanad MP refusing to wear a turban “when there were no cameras”. Malviya also said “exploiting religious sentiments for politics” was in the “Congress’s DNA”.
Everything is choreographed in Bharat Jodo Yatra including who should be called in to tie the turban and its colour. What is offensive though is Rahul Gandhi refusing to wear the turban when there were no cameras…Exploiting religious sentiments for politics is in Congress’s DNA. pic.twitter.com/PFTr5P68r4
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) January 11, 2023
Sharing the same clip, BJP leader and former president of the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee Manjinder Singh Sirsa termed Gandhi’s stint a “nautanki”.
Posting a video of himself alongside the purported clip featuring Gandhi, Sirsa said, “The colour Kesari is the symbol of sacrifice. Rahul Gandhi is going to Punjab, visiting gurdwaras, tying a Kesari turban and he doesn’t even know the meaning of Kesari colour.”
“ अभी नहीं बाँधूँगा” – कैमरा और मीडिया वाले नहीं थे तो @RahulGandhi ने सिर पर दस्तार सजाने से मना कर दिया
भारत जोड़ो यात्रा में “टी-शर्ट” से लेकर “दस्तार” तक…हर हरकत एक नौटंकी और लिखी हुई स्क्रिप्ट का हिस्सा है
गांधी परिवार का सिख विरोधी चेहरा एक बार फिर बेनक़ाब@ANI @republic pic.twitter.com/9ioD3DoAJn
— Manjinder Singh Sirsa (@mssirsa) January 11, 2023
In yet another tweet, Sirsa said, “Besides being the colour of holy Nishan Sahib, Kesari is the colour of Courage & Commitment & is a colour in our national flag also! Everyone in this video including Rahul Gandhi are ignorant about the significance of dastaar. He wore it without any emotion or respect. How fake!! (sic).”
Sources in the Congress, however, told ThePrint, that Gandhi did not refuse to wear a turban and was instead saying no to a woman who asked for a photo.
Hitting back at the BJP camp, former Punjab deputy chief minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said Gandhi’s T-shirt or his saffron turban were non issues and the Bharat Jodo Yatra was bigger than these.
“When PM Modi and Amit Shah came to Punjab, they were also seen wearing turbans. Turban is a symbol of Punjabi pride and respect. I can’t wear a saffron turban every day, ask any Sikh and they may not wear the same colour turban every day. Talk about the pride in wearing a turban, rather than making it a controversy,” he told reporters during the yatra.
Congress’s Punjab Spokesperson Amit Bawa, meanwhile, said these were attempts by the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to defame Gandhi.
“They have always done this. They try to defame Rahul Gandhi by making doctored video clips viral, but that hasn’t deterred people’s support to Gandhi, which is visible in the way the yatra was getting tremendous support from the people of Punjab,” he told reporters.
Also read: Rahul’s Golden Temple visit sparks row over Blue Star, anti-Sikh riots — ‘family’s gory history’
Bharat Jodo Yatra in Punjab
Gandhi was first spotted wearing the saffron-coloured turban when he visited the Golden Temple in Amritsar Tuesday. He started the yatra in Punjab the next day after a visit to the historic Fatehgarh Sahib Gurdwara, where he was spotted wearing a red-coloured turban.
On the 118th day of the yatra Thursday, Gandhi began the march at 7am from Khanna and reached Ludhiana’s Samrala Chowk around noon. Former Punjab CM Charanjit Singh Channi was also seen walking alongside Gandhi for sometime.
Apart from Channi, Congress MPs Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, Ravneet Bittu, Amar Singh, Mohammad Sadiq and other state Congress leaders were seen walking with Gandhi.
The BJP had targetted Gandhi earlier too over his visit to the Golden Temple. The ruling party members reminded Gandhi of his family’s ties with the Sikhs. Congress leaders, however, hit back saying the party has respect for the Sikhs and Gandhi was walking on the footsteps of the Sikh gurus.
Also read: Why BJP wants to make Sikh icon Banda Singh Bahadur its own — ‘defender of faith against Mughals’