We will invite Tushar Gandhi to Kerala again and again: Congress

Thiruvananthapuram, March 13 (IANS) A day after RSS and BJP activists protested against Mahatma Gandhi’s great-grandson Tushar Gandhi in Neyyattinkara, Kerala, the Congress party strongly defended him.

Leader of Opposition V.D. Satheesan condemned the incident, calling it "highly deplorable" that someone with Gandhi's lineage was treated in such a manner.

"Tushar Gandhi was stopped and abused by fascist forces. The Kerala government must take action because our state has always taken a firm stand against fascism," Satheesan said.

Tushar Gandhi was in Neyyattinkara to unveil a statue of the late Gopinathan Nair, a respected Gandhian, at an event organised by Nair's trust.

The protest erupted after Gandhi, in his speech, accused the Sangh Parivar of spreading a "cancer" that had crippled the country's soul. Angered by these remarks, RSS and BJP workers shouted slogans and blocked his car, causing tension in the area.

Unfazed, Tushar Gandhi responded with pro-Gandhi slogans before leaving the venue. "I have done no wrong. I am not scared of these people," he said on Thursday.

State BJP leader S. Suresh dismissed Tushar Gandhi as an "urban Marxist" who "has given his tongue on rent."

Satheesan hit back, asserting that the Congress would continue to invite Tushar Gandhi to Kerala. "What he said is the truth, and we will keep saying the same," he said.

CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam also condemned the protest, stating, "This is what the Sangh Parivar does best, and it is unacceptable."

While Tushar Gandhi has chosen not to file a complaint, Congress workers have registered one at the local police station.

Tushar Gandhi's visit was part of the centenary celebrations of the historic meeting between Mahatma Gandhi and Sree Narayana Guru at Sivagiri Mutt in Varkala, which took place on March 12, 1925.

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