Recently, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has set new boundaries for its spokespersons and leaders participating in television debates as the BJP government faced a massive international backlash following party ex-spokesperson Nupur Sharma's statements on Prophet Muhammad.
Twitterati seems confused on this topic as Nupur Sharma (now ex spokesperson of BJP) said exactly what Islamic leader Zakir Naik had previously said in one of the videos. LawStreet Journal shared the video of Zakir Nair and asked its viewers to comment their views on this topic, the tweets read as:
“@BJPIndia Letting down a dignified, well-educated and dedicated and honest lady citizen has shocked the whole Hindu world. Wasn’t she truthful? Is she an anti-national person? No! Why was she ditched by her own government?”
Another tweet read as:
“Same answer by two persons, but one passed one failed, politically motivated”
Some tweeted:
“Nupur said the same in hindi, and Zakir said it in English”
On Sunday, the party suspended Nupur Sharma, expelled Naveen Jindal, and issued a statement asserting that it “respects all religions” and “strongly denounces insults of any religious personality.”
Arun Singh, party general secretary, stated that,
“The BJP strongly denounces insults of any religious personalities of any religion. The BJP is also against any ideology which insults or demeans any sect or religion. The BJP does not promote such people or philosophy.”
The new rules framed by BJP are as follows:
- Only authorised spokespersons and panelists will participate in TV debates, and they will be assigned by the media cell.
- The spokespersons have been warned against criticising any religion, its symbols, or religious figures.
- BJP panelists have been prohibited from crossing the line during heated discussions.
- No provocation can violate the party’s ideology or ideals.
- The first check for the topic of the TV discussion, prepare for it, and find out the party’s line on it before appearing on any channel.
- The Spokespersons and panelists for the party should stay on the agenda. They should not fall into any traps.
- The BJP also wants its spokespersons to focus on the government’s social welfare work, sources said.
