On Monday, senior Congress leader P Chidambaram asserted that should the Constitution be altered to align with the BJP-RSS agenda, it would signify the demise of parliamentary democracy, federalism, minority rights, and the status of English as one of the official languages. Chidambaram's remarks came over BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde's statement that his party needs a two-thirds majority to amend the Constitution.
In a post on X, Chidambaram said, The BJP's intention to amend the Constitution was never a secret. Dozens of BJP leaders in private conversations have said that India must be a Hindu Rashtra, that Hindi must be the sole official language of India and the central government must be strong and prevail over the state governments. Sometimes, members like Hegde spill the beans, and quickly deny their words, the former Union minister said, adding that this is an old ploy.
Chidambaram remarked that the RSS/BJP cadres are encouraged by the ongoing pursuit of amending the Constitution, indicating that the party's objectives are being fulfilled. He claimed that if the Constitution is amended according to the RSS/BJP agenda, it will mark the demise of Parliamentary democracy, Federalism, minority rights, and the status of English as one of the two official languages.
On Sunday, the BJP dismissed Hegde's remarks as a "personal opinion" and requested clarification from him.