the goan I network
MAPUSA
Describing former IAS officer Kannan Gopinathan a “pseudo-secularist” and a member of the “tukde tukde” gang, BJP spokesman Premanand Mahambre on Wednesday said protests against the Citizen (Amendment) Act (CAA) can be held but speeches against the country will not be tolerated.
He also said India’s GDP growth of 5% was much better compared to other developing countries in the world and that the governments at the Centre and the State have the capacity to turnaround the unemployment problem.
“Anyone can protest against the CAA or question the government. It’s a democratic right. But if you are running a Pakistani agenda then that is not acceptable. No one should speak against the country,” said Mahambre.
The BJP spokesman was addressing a news conference in party’s district office in Mapusa. The North Goa District BJP President Mahanand Asnodkar, Vice President Franky Carvalho, General Secretary Rajsingh Rane and Shivanand Shirodkar were also present.
Continuing, Mahambre said the former IAS officer did not know the history of India and its freedom struggle. He said some people were misguiding and misinterpreting the CAA and misleading the people of the country.
He further said CAA was not going to remove citizenship of anyone in the country instead it was giving citizenship to the prosecuted minorities of the three listed countries.
“Our country is not a dharmashala by giving entry to anyone and whoever. When Hindu Pandits were chased away from Kashmir these people remained quiet as they were scared of the fanatics,” he said.
The former IAS officer, Kannan Gopinathan, who quit the prestigious civil service cadre in protest against the Kashmir lockdown, was in Goa to speak on the dangers of arbitrary and discretionary powers inherent in CAA-NPR-NRC.
Mhambre said although the pseudo-secularists were spreading the canard that BJP was a Hindutva party, his party was taking all religious communities together.
“We are nationalists. We are proud of our country. Our party has not given facilities only to Hindus. Every religious community has got the benefit of the schemes of this government,” he said.
The BJP spokesman said economically India was doing admirably well when the world was experiencing economic downturn.
“India’s GDP growth of 5% is really appreciable. It’s quite good considering the global downturn. Many developing countries have 1 per cent and some have negative GDP,” he said.
Slamming the 55 years of misrule by Congress in the country, the BJP spokesman said the BJP-led government was trying to resolve the problems created by Congress.
He said unemployment problem was faced by all the governments in the past and the present BJP-led government was trying to find ways to this problem too.
