Ambedkar's work rejects what BJP stands for: Chidambaram

Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram on Friday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP for alleging that the Congress had tried to "suppress" B.R. Ambedkar's contributions, saying though the BJP is "desperate" to embrace the Dalit icon, his life and work "reject what the BJP stands for".

"BJP may be desperate to embrace Babasaheb Ambedkar but Dr Ambedkar's life, work and writings comprehensively reject what the BJP stands for," said Chidambaram on Twitter.

"It was (former Prime Minister) Jawaharlal Nehru who invited Dr. Ambedkar to head the committee to draft the Constitution. There can be no greater tribute to the genius of Babasaheb Ambedkar."

On Thursday, Modi said in a campaign rally in Gujarat that people are more influenced by Ambedkar than the Gandhis. "After his death, a particular family tried to suppress his ideas. His contributions to India were downplayed. But these people could not erase him from people's psyche."

A day earlier, Modi said: "When Pandit Nehru's influence on the Congress was all over, Congress ensured that Ambedkar found it tough to join the Constituent Assembly" and that the Congress never thought of conferring the Bharat Ratna on Ambedkar.

--IANS

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