Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Tuesday said the Congress has survived for more than 100 years as there is internal freedom in the party with people of different mindsets acommodated in it.
Reddy, who spoke at the executive meeting of the ruling Congress in Telangana, also said a fresh case was filed against Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi to divert public attention from the 'vote chori' campaign.
Addressing the newly-appointed District Congress Committee (DCC) presidents at the meeting, he said the basic "rules of the game" in politics is that someone would try to create hurdles. Nobody in politics is immune to this, he said.
Highlighting the internal freedom in Congress, he recalled the G-23 (group of 23) leaders virtually questioning the Gandhi family leadership in 2022.
There is so much freedom in Congress that some leaders send letters even against the Gandhi family which made steller contributions to the country, he said.
"The Congress survived for 140 years because there is internal freedom. Otherwise, it would have been shut down like some regional parties or Janata party," Reddy said.
The grand old party takes everyone along and it is home to people with different mindsets, he said.
Drawing an analogy with Hindu religion, the CM said there are many gods worshipped by the devotees.
"How many gods are there for Hindus? Three crores? There is Hanuman for those who are not married. There is another god for those who marry twice," he said.
There are local deities where toddy and non-vegetarian food are served during certain events and there are gods worshipped by those who eat 'dal rice' (vegetarians), he said.
"The Congress takes along all types of individuals. One says he will worship Lord Venkateswara, another says he will worship Hanuman. When we could not bring consensus on gods, I don't think we can have consensus on political leaders and DCC presidents," he said.
The comments apparently came in response following reports of unease within Congress over the appointment of new DCC chiefs.
The new DCC chiefs should forget their past differences with other leaders and work to strengthen the party. They can go to the residences of senior leaders and seek their cooperation, he said.
Meanwhile, senior BJP leaders condemned Reddy's comments, issuing a call for Hindu unity across the state.
State BJP president N Ramchander Rao called for protests across Telangana against Revanth Reddy's comments, including burning his effigies.
In a statement on Tuesday, Union Minister Kishan Reddy said the chief minister, during the recent Jubilee Hills bypoll campaign, had stated that "Congress means Muslims and Muslims mean Congress".
The CM appears to be making arrogant comments against Hindus and Hindu gods and goddesses because of his friendship with the AIMIM, he said.
"The time has come for Hindus to unite in Telangana also. The time has come to show the power of Hindus to Revanth Reddy and Congress party," said Kishan Reddy, the Union Coal Minister.
The arrogance of Congress and Revanth Reddy should be removed using the power of vote, which helped them to come to power, he said.
Sanjay Kumar, Union MoS (Home), said the BJP had cautioned during the Jubilee Hills bypoll that Hindus would lose their self-respect if either Congress or BRS won the election.
The BJP's caution turned out to be true following Revanth Reddy's remarks, he said.
"Hindu society should think now whether they want to face insults by remaining divided or show their power by ensuring unity. BJP never insults other religions. BJP respects all religions," he said.
The Central government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi works with the philosophy of 'sab ka saath, sab ka vikas, sab ka vishwas' (Together, for everyone's growth, with everyone's trust), Sanjay Kumar added.
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