The Congress today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi if he wanted to erase the Congress culture of inclusiveness and large-heartedness, and accused him of not changing the "BJP-RSS culture of vendetta, divisiveness and communal disharmony".
Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi alleged the prime minister was obsessed with the idea of having Congress party erased, but has now explained he does not mean the party but "Congress culture" when he talks of a Congress-free India.
Singhvi's comments came a day after Modi told a news channel in an interview that his slogan of a 'Congress-free India' was not about eliminating the main opposition party politically but about ridding the country of the "Congress culture" which he termed as casteist, dynastic, corrupt and involving total control over power among other ills.
"I would like to ask the prime minister which of these characteristics he wants to erase the large-heartedness and magnanimity of Nehruvian culture, the inclusiveness of the Congress party, the ability of the Congress party to carry the whole country - different sections of the country together?" Singhvi said today.
He said the concept of fraternity is in the Congress's preamble but it does not exist in the lexical dictionary of the BJP.
Singhvi also asked whether the prime minister wanted to erase the Congress culture that talked of the pillars of Indian democracy - socialism, secularism, non-alignment and an independent foreign policy.
He asked whether Modi wanted to erase the 10 years of unprecedented growth which the "Congress culture" brought very recently.
"Does he want to erase 'Aadhaar' by which he swears every day but which he practices in a distorted manner? Does he want to erase the Congress culture which is the world's largest social welfare scheme MGNREGA and does he want to erase the world's largest Insurance scheme the Bima Yojna?" he asked.
Singhvi alleged that what the PM does not want to change and erase is non-Congress culture of divisiveness.
"Call it BJP culture, call it 'Parivar' culture, call it RSS culture, call it Bajrang Dal, vendetta, divisiveness, communal disharmony and anti-scientific gibberish about Darwin, and lynch mentality, I am sure that he does not want to erase," he said.
In the 'Times Now' interview yesterday, Modi noted the Congress has been the "main pillar" of politics in the country and spread its culture to all political parties. He said his call for a "Congress-mukt" India was "symbolic" and he wants even the Congress to be free of the "Congress culture".
To a question that every party is avoiding the Congress party, Singhvi said, "it is highly premature to speculate on alliances".
The CPI-M had yesterday said it would not align with the Congress in Tripura.
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