Union Minister Chirag Paswan slams Congress for "pretending" to respect Baba Saheb Ambedkar

New Delhi [India], December 18 (ANI): Union Minister Chirag Paswan on Wednesday attacked the Congress for "pretending" to respect Baba Saheb Ambedkar and said that when Congress was in power, they even forgot Baba Saheb's name.
"Congress is today expressing concern about Baba Saheb's respect, this is the same Congress which did not consider it necessary to give respect to Baba Saheb Ambedkar while he was alive... For decades, Congress did not consider it necessary to put even a picture of him in the Parliament... The first picture of Baba Saheb Ambedkar was put in the Parliament when a non-Congress Govt came to power. Congress also did not consider it necessary to give Bharat Ratna in honour of Baba Saheb," Chirag Paswan told ANI.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the NDA government at the Center have worked to develop and identify the major events related to Bhim Rao Ambedkar's life... As long as Congress was in power, they forgot Baba Saheb's name...Today the same Congress party is worried about Baba Saheb's respect?... Congress is only pretending," he added.
This came after Amit Shah lashed out at the Congress party and said that it had become a 'fashion' for the party to take Ambedkar's name.
"If they had taken the name of God so many times instead of Ambedkar then they would have got heaven for seven lives," Shah said.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday defended Amit Shah's remarks on Babasaheb Ambedkar and said that Shah exposed the Congress' dark history of insulting Ambedkar after which they were clearly stung and stunned by the facts he presented.
In a series of posts on X, PM Modi said that Congress sat in power for years but did nothing to empower the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities.
"In Parliament, Amit Shah Ji exposed the Congress' dark history of insulting Dr Ambedkar and ignoring the SC/ST Communities. They are clearly stung and stunned by the facts he presented, which is why they are now indulging in theatrics! Sadly, for them, people know the truth! Congress can try as they want but they can't deny that the worst massacres against SC/ST Communities have happened under their regimes. For years, they sat in power but did nothing substantive to empower the SC and ST communities," PM Modi said.
The Prime Minister listed the "Congress' sins" towards Babasaheb Ambedkar.
"The list of the Congress' sins towards Dr Ambedkar includes- Getting him defeated in elections not once but twice. Pandit Nehru campaigning against him and making his loss a prestige issue. Denying him a Bharat Ratna. Denying his portrait, a place of pride in Parliament's Central Hall," he said. (ANI)