BJP using communal rhetoric to suppress debate on critical public issues: Patwari

Times News NetworkIndore: The political storm over alleged insult to National Song Vande Mataram at Indore Municipal Corporation (IMC) budget meeting intensified on Saturday with Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee president Jitu Patwari accusing BJP of using communal rhetoric to suppress discussions on critical public issues, like Bhagirathpura water contamination tragedy.Responding to chief minister Mohan Yadav's demand for his resignation, Patwari questioned the BJP's credentials regarding patriotism. "A party whose parent organization did not hoist the tricolour at its headquarters for 50 years does not need to teach patriotism to the Congress," Patwari said during a press conference in Indore Press Club. He emphasized that the National Song and National Anthem were central to Congress's soul and were rallying cries during the freedom struggle.Patwari further accused the BJP of using the controversy as a diversionary tactic to avoid answering questions regarding the Rs 8,500 crore budget and 35 deaths caused by contaminated water in Bhagirathpura. "The cancer of corruption has gripped the state, and the BJP fans communalism to suppress the voice of the people," he said.Patwari said that the conduct of the corporators involved was under review. "I personally did not like the corporators not singing the National Song," he said. "The matter has been referred to the party's disciplinary committee and a decision will be reached soon. While singing the song can be a personal choice, publicly refusing to do so is wrong and is being taken seriously by the party leadership," he said.