New Delhi, Apr 24 (UNI) The Congress on Tuesday distanced itself from the remarks by senior party leader Salman Khurshid who has said that his party does have blood on its hands.
Speaking at an event in Aligarh Muslim university, Mr Khurshid replying to a question asked by a former AMU student, who was identified as Amir, about the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the riots following the Babri Masjid demolition in 1992, when the Congress was in power at the Centre, said,'"I'm a part of the Congress so let me accept that we have blood on our hands. '
"This is the reason you're telling us that if someone attacks you then we (Congress) must not come forward to protect you," he said.
Talking to reporters here, AICC spokesperson P L Punia, reacting to Mr Khurshid's statement, said,'the Congress disagrees with Mr Khurshid's statement . I would like to state that before Independence and after it, the Congress has worked towards building an egalitarian society and taking all sections of the society together be it the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, the poor or the religious minorities.
We have always fought forces that seek to divide the country on religious lines.. '
Referring to the statement by Mr Khurshid, Mr Punia said that such statements only help the powers that be to divide the society on religious lines to come to power at any cost.
'All leaders must remember that such unfounded statements only help the powers that be to divide the society on religious lines to come to power at any cost.,'Mr Punia said.
Speaking at the event, Mr Khurshid said,'"I'm telling you this, we're ready to show the blood on our hands so that you understand that you must not get blood on your hands. If you attack them, you are the ones who would get stains on your hands. Learn something from our history and don't create such a situation...so that when you come back to AMU after 10 years no one will ask you this question.'
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