Naqvi slams Congress for calling Rajnath's Shastra puja a 'tamasha'

Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Wednesday slammed Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge for referring to acceptance ceremony and 'Shashtra Puja' of Rafale fighter jet as 'tamasha' (drama) and accused Congress of forgetting Indian traditions.

"The urge to play politics in everything has pushed Congress leaders far away from our culture and traditions," Naqvi told ANI.

Naqvi was responding to Kharge's remark over Rajnath Singh's Shashtra Puja, which the Congress leader had termed as 'Tamasha'.

During his visit, Rajnath had emblazoned the Rafale aircraft with an 'Om' and laid flowers, coconut and lemons to ward off the evil eye.

On this, the Congress leader said that his party did not show off when they bought weapons-like the Bofors gun. "These people go, show off, sit inside (the aircraft)," he said, referring to the sortie Rajnath took in the aircraft after performing the rituals.

Reacting to this, Naqvi said, "What problem do these people have if someone is promoting the Indian culture? Unfortunately, they did not see such a thing (during their tenure) and were busy in other things. They are worried now."

The first of the 36 French-built Rafale fighter jet bearing the tail number RB-001 was formally handed over to India on Tuesday. The ceremony coincided with the foundation ceremony of the IAF.

The Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) for 36 Rafale aircraft procurement was signed between the Government of India and Government of France on September 23, 2016.