Congress always insulted Ambedkar, says BJP, demands apology

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Ravi Shankar Prasad addresses a press conference, at the Party headquarters in New Delhi on Monday.
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday (December 23, 2024) accused the Congress of “always insulting” Constitution framer Bhimrao Ambedkar during his lifetime, and that the party was now indulging in “a drama of remembering his legacy.”

Former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said this while reacting to the Congress’s weeklong nationwide campaign against Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s speech in Parliament during the Winter Session, which, the Congress maintains, had ‘insulting’ references to Ambedkar.

As part of the ‘Ambedkar Samman Saptah’, Congress workers and leaders will hold marches and press conferences to remember Ambedkar’s legacy, the party had said on Saturday.

Mr. Prasad accused the Congress of using a small portion of Mr. Shah’s recent speech in the Rajya Sabha out of context in a bid to “establish its political identity.” He alleged that the Congress was doing a “drama” of remembering his legacy. “The Congress, which always insulted B.R. Ambedkar, is holding press conferences across the country… Stop this drama. Stop this hypocrisy,” he said at a presser at the BJP’s headquarters in New Delhi.

“The Congress must tender an unconditional apology for all the insults and humiliations done to B.R. Ambedkar during his lifetime and to his legacy after his death. First of all, publicly apologise and then hold press conferences,” he added.

Mr. Prasad said that the people of the country were very mature and the Congress’s “efforts will not succeed.”

“The Congress party had forced Ambedkar to resign during elections, and they made sure he couldn’t build a memorial. Now, Congress is holding a press conference in Ambedkar’s name. When Ambedkar was resigning, he wasn’t even allowed to speak,” he said.

“The BJP demands that Congress apologise for the mistreatment of Ambedkar, which is also documented in papers. [Narayan Sadoba] Kajrolkar [who defeated Ambedkar in the 1952 Lok Sabha polls] was honoured with an award, and this was done by Congress. Dr. Ambedkar was never in favour of partition. There is a significant difference in the thinking of the BJP and the Congress. We believe in respecting even our staunchest opponents, and we have honored our opponents with awards as well,” Mr. Prasad said.

The BJP leader raised concerns about the lack of proper safeguards for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities under previous Congress governments, saying that only Muslims have received adequate protection.