Panaji: Former Union Minister Ramakant Khalap on Wednesday said that construction of temple at Ayodhya will not help in polarisation of votes for BJP during the upcoming Lok Sabha election.
( Click here to watch his full interview:
Talking to GNH, Khalap who served as Union Law minister in Deve Gowda cabinet said that Shree Ram is a universal God and any activity related to him will not give political mileage to any particular political party.
The 76-year old politician is currently a Congress leader, after he quitting the MGP, two decades back.
Khalap also said that he is aspiring to contest on Congress ticket from North Goa Parliamentary seat.
The Congress leader said that it is “perfectly possible” for his party to win both the Goa Lok Sabha seats — North and South Goa constituency.
He said that though Congress has only one Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) in North Goa Parliamentary constituency, the party has huge following in this region.
Khalap said that the Congress has been the oldest party and has acceptance across the different section of the people.
When asked about the Jai Shree Ram wave after pran pratisthapana of the temple at Ayodhya, Khalap said that it is a wrong notion that there will be polarisation of votes and it will go against the Congress party.
“When someone utters Jai Shree Ram in front of me, I reciprocated with the greeting Jai Shree Ram. Shree Ram is a universal God,” he said.
Khalap said that Ram Bhakts don’t belong to any single political party.
The Congress leader, who is known for introducing Women’s Reservation Bill in the Parliament during his tenure as Union Law minister, said that PM Narendra Modi is “definitely a factor in upcoming Lok Sabha election.”
“But he is not the alone factor. There are other factors also that will play pivotal role in the election,” he said.
Khalap recalled the times when there was a slogan “Indira is India”. Then PM Indira Gandhi broke the backbone of Khalistan movement, she was responsible for freedom of Bangladesh, she even lost her life to the terrorist attack. “But even after that we have seen the political changes that happened in the country,” he said.
