Mysuru: Senior
BJP leader and former minister S Suresh Kumar on Tuesday said that B R Ambedkar is one of tall leaders who promoted nationalism.
"He gave a voice to the oppressed classes and respected their rights," he said, inaugurating Ambedkar's Jayanti celebrations hosted by BJP. "We cannot find any other leader who promoted nationalism like Ambedkar did," he said, pointing out that the party has been promoting his ideals as part of the leader's 125th birth anniversary.
"Being a patriot, he cared for the oppressed classes. Congress, which speaks about Ambedkar, prevented him from entering
Parliament
by denying him a ticket to contest Lok Sabha elections.
Congress doesn't respect leaders when they are alive, but heaps encomiums on them when they are dead to gain political mileage," he said, pointing at the treatment it meted out to former PM P V Narasimha Rao and former CM D Devaraj Urs.
Kumar said that the party will celebrate
Ambedkar Jayanti throughout the year at the behest of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi. The celebrations will be taken to district and taluk levels too, he stated.
Former minister S A Ramdas, the party's city unit chief B H Manjunath, district unit president M Shivanna and Chamarajanagar district chief K R Mallikarjunappa were present.
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