Raashid Alvi, who represents the party in the upper house of India's Parliament, was referring to the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh or RSS. "I demanded a ban on this organization in the presence of Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh at recent party conclave," said Alvi while speaking to Arab News on Sunday.
Alvi is in the Kingdom for the Republic Day celebrations organized at the weekend in Jubail by India Forum. "Our party has a long history of fighting communal elements ... It represents the true secular ethos of our country," he said. "The RSS has been found guilty of carrying out blasts in so many of our cities. It has been thoroughly exposed. And, therefore, we are asking for banning it."
India's main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party, which is locked in a direct electoral fight with the ruling Congress party in many states, draws political strength, cadre and ideological inspiration from the RSS. The country's independence hero, Mohandas Gandhi, was also assassinated at the hands of a RSS activist. The country's minorities are particularly alarmed at the organization's hate-filled agenda.
The blasts that Alvi was referring to led to the deepening of divide between Muslims and Hindus. Scores of Muslim youngsters were put behind bars on mere suspicion that they were ones who carried out the deadly blasts. It was only revealed later that the blasts were part of an elaborate conspiracy to defame Muslims and to whip up Hindu backlash.
"Our party and our government will ensure that India remains strong and that all communities will get their due share in governance, education and all other aspects of life," said Alvi.
On Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, Alvi said: "He is a terrorist. I have always called him a terrorist. I visited Gujarat as part of an all-party delegation during those terrible riots. I saw for myself the terror this man created in his state."
Alvi then belonged to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party. "I spoke against Modi, but Mayawati supported him. I disagreed with her and was thrown out of her party. I had very good relations with BSP, but I had an ideological disagreement with her on Gujarat," he said.
The Congress MP feels the only way Modi can be defeated is through an electoral process. "This is the age of coalition politics. And though we have Article 356, the federal government has its limitations. It is very difficult to dismiss any government. Our party is trying to consolidate its presence in Gujarat and hopefully we will be able to defeat Modi in the next elections." In all the elections that followed the anti-Muslim carnage, Modi has won landslide victories in the state.
On the increased exasperation of Muslims with Congress for lack of proper representation in the federal government, Alvi said, "India is a secular country and our party is built on secular ethos. Sonia Gandhi is always concerned about Muslims. We have Salman Khurshid, Farooq Abdullah, Ghulam Nabi Azad and E. Ahamed as ministers. Having said that let me also state categorically that it is not necessary that only a Muslim can represent Muslim interests. Non-Muslim ministers do and will represent Muslim interests as well."
When Alvi's attention was drawn to the demand made by India Forum President Anis Bakhsh for the creation of a degree college in Jubail for the children of non-resident Indians, he said he would speak to the prime minister and impress upon him for the need for such institutions. "I understand the need for a degree college here and I will personally speak to the prime minister. Our government should initiate talks with the Saudi government for the creation of such a college," he said. "There are NRIs here who are even willing to invest their money in setting up such a college. The only thing they need is support from both Indian and Saudi governments."
