Killing innocent is not religiousness: Venkaiah Naidu

New Delhi: Strongly condemning the acts of terrorism and violence in the name of religion on national and international level, Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu said killing innocents or assaulting them is not religion. He was delivering the 10th annual lecture of the National Commission for Minorities on “Minorities in Nation Building”.

Mr. Naidu emphasised that there is nothing called religious terror because no religion sanctions terror; it is just individuals who use terror to further their personal goals or political agenda.

Mr. Naidu paid rich tributes to the contribution of minorities, saying that people like Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Hakim Ajmal Khan, Dr. Zakir Husain, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Rafi Ahmed Khidwai, Ashfaqullah, Mohammed Hamed Ansari, Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan and Barakatullah have been at the forefront of building a vibrant India. Acknowledging the services of minorities especially Muslims he said the contribution of minorities right from freedom struggle till date cannot be ignored.

The Vice-President said that India is a secular country not just because its Constitution guarantees it but because “secularism is in our DNA”.