Naidu: If not mother, who would you salute? Afzal Guru?

December 08, 2017 09:50

"If not your mother, who would you salute, Afzal Guru," Vice President Venkaiah Naidu asked, apparently questioning why there were objections to saying 'Vande Mataram', which meant salute to the motherland.

"Vande Mataram mane maa tujhe salam. Kya samasya hai? Agar maa ko salam nahi karenge to kya Afzal Guru ko salam karenge? (Vande Mataram means salute to mother. What is problem with it, if you don't salute your mother, who would you salute, Afzal Guru)," he asked.

Vande Mataram means praising the mother, he further said while referring to the people who are seeking to define nationalism.

He said when someone says 'Bharat Mata ki jai' it is not only about some goddess in a photo.

"It is about all 125 crore people living in this country irrespective of their caste, colour, creed and religion. They all are Indians," Naidu said.

Mentioning the Supreme Court's 1995 verdict on Hindutva which says it is not a religion but a way of life, he said, "Hinduism is not a narrow concept, it is a broader cultural connotation of India."-- PTI

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