The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday strongly criticised former Vice President Hamid Ansari over his remarks on Mahmud of Ghazni, alleging that he portrayed the historical figure as an Indian rather than a foreign invader. Sharing a video clip of Ansari’s purported comments on X, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused him of eulogising Ghazni, who is widely associated with the destruction and desecration of the Somnath temple.
Poonawalla also targeted the Congress party, claiming it consistently seeks to whitewash atrocities committed against Hindus. He alleged that the party and its ecosystem defend or justify individuals who, in his words, act against the nation.
"The Congress ecosystem always eulogises Hindu haters. Whoever attacks or commits atrocities on Hindus is always subjected to whitewashing by the Congress ecosystem. Now, Hamid Ansari says Ghazni was not a cruel person and was just an Indian. Even if a person is breaking India into pieces, whether it is Sharjeel, Yaqub, Afzal or Umar, they stand in support of such elements. This shows the Hindu hatred in their mindset," Poonawalla told ANI.
He also criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for skipping key national events such as the Beating Retreat ceremony and the Independence Day programme, accusing him of placing family interests above the Constitution.
Another BJP national spokesperson, Sudhanshu Trivedi, said Ansari’s remarks reflected what he described as a “sick mindset” and an undue affection for foreign invaders and plunderers.
What Hamid Ansari said about Ghazni?
In the video clip, Ansari is heard saying that figures often portrayed as foreign invaders in history books were, in fact, Indians.
"I have always said that the people we portray as foreign invaders in our history books, whether it is a Lodi or a Ghazi, were all Indian looters. They did not come from outside. Politically, it is convenient to say they destroyed this or that, but they were all Indians," he said in an interview.
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