BJP attacks Congress chief for calling Diwali an Eid of happiness

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge extended Diwali greetings on November 8 and described the festival as an occasion of happiness and togetherness. Speaking to reporters, he said Diwali is a major festival celebrated by everyone in India and called it 'khushiyon ka Eid', meaning an Eid of happiness.

BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari accused the Congress of bringing appeasement and vote-bank politics into Diwali greetings. He described the remark as evidence of the party's anti-Sanatan approach and called Congress anti-Sanatan in a post on X.

“If Diwali is an Eid of happiness, then according to Kharge ji, Eid too would be a Diwali of happiness.”

BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia addressed a press conference at the party headquarters in New Delhi on Monday. He alleged that Congress disrespects Hindu religious traditions while trying to appease the Muslim community and said Kharge appeared reluctant to acknowledge Diwali.

AIMIM spokesperson Waris Pathan also criticised the comparison. He said Diwali is a major festival celebrated enthusiastically by Hindus and Eid is equally important to Muslims, adding that equating the two amounted to a political stunt.

Congress leader Pawan Khera defended Kharge on X, saying critics were semantically ignorant because the word Eid literally means festival. He told critics to listen to the statement again and called them jahil, meaning illiterate or ignorant.

Bhatia claimed Kharge was acting under the influence of Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. He said Diwali was celebrated, is celebrated and will continue to be celebrated, and added that nobody can hurt Hindu sentiments while living in India.