Hyderabad: Actor Prakash Raj, on January 18, launched a scathing attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for staying silent over the recent attacks taking place under the garb of religious sensitivities in the country. “They call me anti-Hindu but I am anti-Modi, anti-Shah, anti-Hegde. They are not Hindus. People who support killing are not Hindus,” the actor said.
Speaking at the India Today South Conclave in Hyderabad, the actor who has often criticized the government in the past said, “When Gauri Lankesh was killed, some people celebrated the murder. These were people who were being followed by PM Modi. Whether I have voted for him or not, he is my Prime Minister. He must speak up against these people. He must pull up his minister for saying that they are here to change the Constitution.” Union Minister Anantkumar Hegde in December had created a controversy when he said that the BJP had come to power to “change the Constitution” and would do so in the “near future.”
“My Prime Minister should ask his Minister, an elected, mandated Minister, not to say that a religion should be wiped out from the earth. That is not Hinduism. If my Prime Minister does not ask his minister to shut up, then I am asking my prime minister you are also not a Hindu. The person who supports killing, cannot be a Hindu.”
Referring to the blanket bans imposed by the states on film Padmaavat, the actor said that the people should vote those governments out. “See there is writing on the wall. There is no conspiracy…State governments which banned Padmaavat citing law and order should quit. If they don’t, we, the people, should vote them out,” he said during the discussion. Attacking the saffron party, he said, “They talk about Rajput pride. I understand if Rajputs of Rajasthan are saying so. But, what it has to do with those in Gujarat? What it has to do with Haryana?”
Prakash Raj, a National award winner, has been criticizing the government on his twitter handle. He has also launched #justasking campaign where he has questioned the government over the delay in the winter session, Tippu Sultan controversy and the recently concluded Gujarat polls. He also took a jibe against the BJP workers in Karnataka who sprinkled cow urine on the stage after his speech.
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