Mohan Bhagwat's "Hindu" statement stirs up row

RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has stirred up a fresh political storm after stating that citizens of India should collectively be known as Hindus.

Speaking at a rally on Sunday, Bhagwat said that the people of Hindustan should be known as Hindus, just as citizens of England are called English and of the US are called Americans. He also declared that the world recognizes Indians as Hindus and that all Indians have descended from the cultural identity that is Hindutva.

Bhagwat's comments have been widely condemned, with leaders from different political parties openly voicing their disapproval.

Congress general secretary Tariq Anwar told ANI, "Mohan Bhagwat is mistaken - the people who live in Hindustan are called Hindustanis, not Hindus. We cannot associate our country with any one religion, or language."

Communist Party of India Marxist (CPI-M) leader Brinda Karat to ANI that Rashtriya Swayam Sevak Sangh (RSS) leader Mohan Bhagwat's statement where he called India a Hindu state is dangerous and condemnable, adding that it is against the secular nature of our country. "Mohan Bhagwat's statement is a dangerous one and I totally condemn it. Is he saying that other religions do not have any place in our country's history? What is Hindutava; what is the basis of this concept? It is just a political concept and nothing else," said Karat.

While Samajwadi Party leader Ram Gopal Yadav termed Bhagwat's language as "the language of Hitler", RJD leader Manoj Jha said that these statements simply pointed towards which direction the present government was tipping towards.