‘Ghost of hatred in Congress’: PM Modi claims party hates Ganpati Puja

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday reignited the Ganesh Chaturthi controversy, accusing the Congress of harbouring animosity towards the festival.
He remarked that any party with genuine respect for India’s faith and culture would never oppose Ganpati Puja.
“A party that has even a shred of respect for our faith and culture can never oppose Ganpati Puja. But today’s Congress harbours hatred even for Ganpati Puja. The land of Maharashtra is a witness to how, during the freedom struggle under the leadership of Lokmanya Tilak, the Ganpati festival became a symbol of India’s unity,” said PM Modi.
While addressing a gathering in Maharashtra’s Wardha, PM Modi said that the current Congress is not the same as the one associated with leaders like Mahatma Gandhi, saying that the soul of patriotism has left it and hatred has taken its place.
He said the language of Congress leaders has changed, and they are spreading an anti-India agenda on foreign soil, a reference to Rahul Gandhi, who was in the US for three days.
“This is the Congress that is being run by the ‘tukde-tukde’ gang and ‘urban Naxals.’ Today, if there is any party that is the most corrupt in the country, it is the Congress,” Modi said.
The work of Congress leaders now revolves around dividing society, talking about breaking the country and insulting Indian culture and faith, alleged PM Modi.
Earlier, the Prime Minister’s visit to Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud’s residence in Delhi for a Ganesh Puja on September 11 triggered a massive controversy and sparked divisions within the legal community.
Opposition parties and some lawyers have questioned the propriety of such a meeting even as the PM’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and other lawyers have dismissed the criticism as unwarranted.
Senior Supreme Court lawyers raised concerns about Prime Minister’s visit, questioning the impact on judicial transparency.