New Delhi: Amid the protest in different parts of Karnataka by BJP, the state Congress working president Satish Jarkiholi on Wednesday wrote a letter to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and withdrew his statement on the origin of the term ‘Hindu’. He has also demanded that an inquiry committee be set up to find out those who tried to malign him as anti-Hindu, as reported by the news agency ANI.
Earlier, speaking in a program, he said that if you come to know the meaning of the word Hindu then you will be ashamed. He also said that "a word and a religion from elsewhere is being forcefully imposed on people here", and demanded that there should be a proper debate in this regard.
Also Read: 'I Won't Apologise', Says Karnataka Congress Leader Satish Jarkiholi Over 'Hindu' Remark
Jarkiholi said, "They speak about Hindu Dharm...this that, where did the Hindu word come from? Is it ours? It is Persian. Persian is from Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan. What is Bharat's relationship with it? Then, how did Hindu become yours? There should be a debate on this."
He said, "Look at 'Wikipedia', where this word (Hindu) comes from? It is not yours. Then why are you placing it at such a high position? If you understand its meaning, you will be ashamed. The meaning of the word Hindu, is very dirty. I'm not saying this, Swamiji has said this, it's on websites."
"A religion and a word from somewhere else is being forcefully imposed on us, there should be a debate on this," he further added.
The remarks made by Jarkiholi have attracted severe backlash and criticism from the Congress’s political opponents - the BJP - and social media users.