New Delhi: Senior BJP leader and finance minister Arun Jaitley on Friday challenged Congress President Rahul Gandhi to oust his party’s Overseas chief Sam Pitroda for his comments on the anti-Sikh riots “it happened in 1984, so what?” “Will the Congress President oust his ‘Guru’ who rubbishes the genocide of India’s most patriotic community in 1984,” he tweeted. Picking up from PM Modi dubbing Pitroda’s remark as “hua to hua” (it happened), in another tweet Jaitley said: “Sam Pitroda’s ‘Hua to Hua’ reaction to the 1984 Sikh killings is reflective of the lack of remorse on the part of the Congress (grand old party: GOP) Party with respect to the 1984 genocide.”
“It is a matter of disgrace the Congress has no remorse over the Sikh killings of 1984,” he added. Pitroda had asked “so what” in response to an interviewer seeking his comments on the BJP claim that instructions to “kill” in 1984 had come from late PM Rajiv Gandhi. He hit back, accusing the BJP of “twisting my words and distorting facts to hide own failures”.
He said he had acknowledged the pain of the Sikhs during the 1984 riots.
BJP distorting my words: Pitroda
In a tweet, Pitroda said: “I have noticed how BJP is again twisting three words from my interview to distort facts, divide us and hide their failures. Sad that they have nothing positive to offer. I acknowledged the pain of my Sikh brothers and sisters during difficult times in 1984 and deeply feel for the atrocities that happened. But these are things from past that are not really relevant to this election which is all about what did Modi government do for the last five years.” What else the BJP can do to attack the Congress with such “lies” when it has no vision to take India forward, he added.
If your family is killed, would you still say so, asks Harsimrat
Bathinda: Harsimrat Kaur Badal on Friday hit out at Sam Pitroda for his recent remark on the 1984 Sikh genocide, asking if his entire family is killed tomorrow would he still think or say “hua to hua”. “I would like to ask Mr Pitroda if his entire family is killed tomorrow will he still think hua to hua. He needs to go to that widow colony and find out those thousands of women who lost their family members overnight,” the Union Minister told ANI. She said she was “shocked and ashamed”. “It just goes to show to the extent Congress’s people are desperate for the chair they can make such a casual statement about the genocide which took place at the behest of Rajiv Gandhi,” the SAD leader said.
