NEW DELHI: AIMIM leader Asaduddin Owaisi on Saturday expressed his deep respect for Lord Ram but strongly criticized Nathuram Godse, the assassin of Mahatma Gandhi.
During a heated debate in the Rajya Sabha on the resolution on the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, Owaisi questioned whether the ruling BJP had a ‘religion of its own’ and demanded clarification from the government.
“I have the highest respect for Lord Ram but hate Nathuram Godse because he killed the person whose last words were ‘Hey Ram’,” Owaisi said.

“I want to ask today: is this government under the leadership of PM Modi for a particular community, the practitioners of a certain religion or the entire country? Does this government have a religion of its own? I believe that this country does not and should not stand for any particular religion,” he added.
He further questioned the government’s intentions and asked whether the resolution on the opening of the Ram Temple and the deity’s consecration on January 22 were meant to favor one religion over another.
“Through this resolution on the January 22 event in Ayodhya, is this government sending out a message that it marked the triumph of one religion over the other? What larger message are they sending out to the 17 crore Muslims in the country?” the AIMIM leader asked.
Owaisi also criticized the BJP for allegedly labeling leaders from the minority community as representatives of Muslim invaders and rulers.
“Am I a spokesperson for Babar, Jinnah or Aurangzeb?” he asked.
Meanwhile, the Rajya Sabha also discussed the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ ceremony of Shri Ram Lalla in Ayodhya on the final day of the 17th Lok Sabha. BJP national president JP Nadda, participating in the discussion, highlighted the significance of the ‘Pran Pratishtha Day’ as a resurgence of the country’s spiritual and cultural consciousness.
“When we speak of the 500-year-old history, it was that of slavery and oppression. However, January 22, 2024 will go down as a day of rebirth and resurgence of the country’s spiritual and cultural conscience. This day will remain memorable for thousands of years,” Nadda said.