Congress slams BJP for pulling down Lenin's statue

The Congress party on Tuesday flayed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Tripura for pulling down statue of Vladimir Lenin and said they are intolerant and that the government which is intolerant cannot run a democracy.

It also said the BJP in the state has become arrogant after coming to power.

"There is not tolerance in them. The government which is intolerant cannot be democratic. To run a democracy, they have to be tolerant. This is what the Constitution says. Unless there is liberty, equality, fraternity and tolerance, the government cannot be run in a democratic way," said senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge.

"After coming to power, they have become arrogant and are making mistakes. They are not just pulling down statues of leaders like Lenin but are also killing Dalits and spreading hatred, apart from harassing and threatening people," he added.

The post-poll violence in Tripura continued for the fourth day on Tuesday even as the administration, BJP and the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) urged everyone to maintain peace.

According to a CPI-M leader, the 11.5-feet fibre statue of Vladimir Lenin was brought down with a bulldozer by the BJP activists on Monday evening.

--IANS

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