Rajasthan’s Congress leader CP Joshi on Friday apologised for his ‘only brahmins know Hinduism’ statement. The apology from CP Joshi comes at least an hour after Rahul Gandhi’s terse remarks.
In a statement, CP Joshi said, “Respecting the ideals of the Congress and the sentiments of the party workers, I express remorse for my statement if it caused any hurt to the sentiments of any section of the society.”
Notably, in a video that surfaced online on Thursday, Joshi was heard saying that only pandits and brahmins knew about Hinduism and were learned enough to speak about it. “Does anyone know what is the caste of Uma Bharti? What is the caste of Sadhvi Ritambhara? In this country, if anyone knows about religion, it is the pandits and the brahmins,” Joshi is heard saying in the video.
After learning this, Rahul Gandhi slammed CP Joshi for making casteist remarks. In a tweet in Hindi, the Gandhi scion said, “Joshi’s remarks do not reflect, and are contrary, to the ideals of the Congress party, as he urged party leaders to refrain from making such statements.”
“CP Joshi’s remark is contrary to the Congress party’s ideals. Party leaders should not give such statement that hurts any segment of the society, “he said. “While respecting the Congress party’s principles and the sentiments of party workers, I am sure Joshiji will realise his mistake. He should express regret over his remarks,” Rahul Gandhi added.
The Assembly elections in Rajasthan will take place on December 7 and the results will be announced on December 11, along with four other states.
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