Against the backdrop of two incidents of lynching and the death of a truck cleaner after an attack, Congress on Sunday said the country was passing through a difficult phase which was not good for its prosperity and economic growth.
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad said, “These days, the situation is very bad in the country as it is going through a difficult phase. It is a matter of concern for the entire nation as it is not good for the prosperity and economic growth of the country.”
He was asked about the lynchings in Dadri area of UP and in Himachal Pradesh and controversial statements made by BJP leaders over it.
The Congress leader, who was in Jammu to take part in a party function, accused the ruling NDA ministers and MPs of giving controversial statements which was “vitiating” the atmosphere of the country.
“It has never happened in the past that the ministers and the MPs of the ruling party give statements which vitiate the atmosphere in the country. The role of the ruling party in the past has always been to bring situation under control if anything bad used to happen,” Azad said.
The former Union minister said the Narendra Modi government should take action against the ministers and MPs of the party who were giving statements that were vitiating the atmosphere in the country.
“It is not a good thing, government should take some action as this is happening from the same particular party which is in power and they must take action against such people,” he said.
“The editorials I have been reading suggest that strict action should be taken against their own party members, ministers and MPs because of their role in the deteriorating situation in the country,” Azad said.
Asked to comment on the death of the truck cleaner after being attacked in Udhampur district of Jammu and Kashmir, Azad said that tolerance in the country was in danger.
“I have just heard that one of the two truckers died today, I had met them yesterday. It is wrong when anybody is killed, whether he is a Hindu, Muslim or a Sikh, we should condemn it. People should learn to be tolerate, but these days tolerance is in danger in the country,” he said.