BELAGAVI, 21 JAN

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said Mahatma Gandhi was a diehard Hindu and the Congress believes in "Gandhi's Hindutva".

BJP always projected Mahatma Gandhi as 'anti-Hindu' but one must understand that it is 100 per cent false, Siddaramaiah said at the inauguration of Mahatma Gandhi's statue in front of Suvarna Vidhana Soudha in Belagavi.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi, Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, top Congress functionaries such as KC Venugopal, Randeep Singh Surjewala Congress ministers, MPs and legislators participated in the event.

The event was organised to commemorate the centenary of the lone Congress session in which Mahatma Gandhi had chaired as the Congress president way back in 1924.

The Chief Minister said, "Mahatma Gandhi used to utter the name of Lord Rama, always. When Nathuram Godse assassinated him, he uttered 'Hey Ram'. There cannot be a better example of it. He was a diehard Hindu."

According to him, Gandhi was never against Hindu faith but he wished to bring reform in Hinduism. He always wanted to see Hindus and Muslims live like brothers.

Gandhi did not limit himself to the freedom struggle but gave guidelines on governance and explained how the ministers should conduct themselves, Siddaramaiah explained.

"We believe in Mahatma Gandhi's Hindutva and they (BJP) believe in dividing the society. They are 'Manuvadis'. We believe in the Indian constitution and BJP goes against the Congress ideology. So we must protect the constitution and save democracy. If we protect the constitution, then it would protect us," the Chief Minister said.

Siddaramaiah also charged that the BJP attempted for the past many years to weaken the constitution.

Speaking on the occasion, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said there would have been anarchy in the country if there was no constitution in the country.