Katheria flayed for ‘hate speech’, three booked

Union Minister Ram Shankar Katheria was on Tuesday slammed by Opposition parties for his alleged hate speech at a condolence meeting of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader in Agra, in which police lodged an FIR but he was not named in it.

The Congress alleged that Katheria’s speech showed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) resorted to divisive agenda, especially ahead of elections, while Asaduddin Owaisi, leader of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, said the real agenda of the NDA government is being “exposed”.

As a group of social activists held a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi against the alleged hate speeches of Katheria and fellow BJP MP Babu Lal, the junior HRD minister claimed he did not name any community at the Sunday meeting. However, Lal remained unapologetic and said Hindus cannot watch silently when they are being targeted.

“What has been published in one of the newspapers is false. I had not taken the name of any community. I had said that the culprits, who had murdered the VHP leader, should be given death sentence. I had also said that the Hindu community should unite for their safety," Katheria said.