Former Army chief and a union minister, VK Singh, has caused yet another row by accusing raising the issues of intolerance in India of doing so in return of accepting money.
Speaking at an event in Los Angeles, Singh said, “This particular debate (on intolerance) is no debate. It is the unnecessary creation of very imaginative minds who are being paid with a lot of money.”
Singh, in the past, had called Indian media presstitues. He slammed Indian media once again for fuelling the intolerance debate.
Full coverage on religious intolerance
He said, “I do not want to comment on how Indian media works. And I will take you back about all the funny things that are being talked about intolerance, what you are meaning. When the Delhi (Assembly) elections took place, suddenly we found a spate of articles and a lot of hysteria that was created that churches are being attacked, the Christian community is being isolated etc.”
He added, “A small incidence of theft in a church was depicted as an attack on church. Why? Because there was somebody who was trying to garner the votes, and the media was playing the ball. Whether it was being paid or not paid, I do not know. That’s a decision or opinion that you have to make.”
Singh said that the debate over intolerance was linked with elections and the ‘day that election was over all the hoopla was gone.’
He said, “All these people who were talking of intolerance and I would like you to put it down in your papers what happened when a Gandhian (Anna Hazare) in his 70s protesting against corruption was picked up in the middle of a night and put into Tihar (Jail). Which was the government in place at that time?”
Singh is no stranger to controversy. His comments likening the two children burnt alive in Haryana to dogs had caused huge outrage with many leaders demanding an FIR to be filed against him under the SC/ST act.