Amid sparks, Rajnath says intolerance won't be allowed

New Delhi Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday said the government wont allow intolerance at any cost and urged intellectuals who have returned their awards to take them back as Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of silence over remarks justifying intolerance by some of his colleaguesRajnath Singh who wound up a twoday debate in the Lok Sabha reached out to the opposition and promised that mistakes if any would be rectified by the governmentThe debate saw furious Bharatiya Janata Party BJP members repeatedly refer to the 197577 Emergency the antiSikh riots of 1984 and the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits from the Kashmir Valley to take digs at the Congress These were dubbed the three biggest instances of intoleranceRajnath Singh File picSpeaking in the Rajya Sabha to mark the 125th birth anniversary of BR Ambedkar one of the prime architects of the constitution Modi said The mantra of unity should be in focus There are many excuses to be divided but we must look for opportunities to be unitedWe wanted a united India he said referring to the partition of the country in 1947 But Modi steered away from the topic of intoleranceRajnath Singh did not He rejected charges of intolerance hurled at the government and said the BJP and Modi were the worst victim of intolerance in politicsGandhi asked Modi not to learn wrong lessons from Pakistan which has failed because they did not allow the voice of people to be heardOur greatest strength is our tolerance he said during a speech that saw repeated interruptions by BJP MPs At one time Gandhi was taunted as he took a sip of water At least let me drink water he exclaimedGandhi asked Will the prime minister start listening to the voice of our people Or will he stand by and watch as his colleagues trample on peoples voiceDoes he Modi think he can condemn our nation into silenceThe Congress leader cited instances to back his charge of intolerance including the lynching of a Muslim man in Uttar Pradesh on charges of eating beef He sought the resignation of union minister VK Singh for allegedly comparing Dalit children with dogsRajnath Singh said The country will decide who is intolerant As far as the government is concerned we will not allow intolerance in any circumstancesHe said he was prepared to meet the intellectuals who have returned the awards Lets talk The government was willing to take any step towards harmony and correct mistakes if anyRajnath Singh said an attempt had been made to defame the Modi government by returning literary and other awardsAs he referred to tensions in some Muslim countries opposition members asked him to reply to allegations concerning the Modi governmentNCP leader Supriya Sule said Rajnath ji you had asked for suggestions I am giving you one please ask your ministers to think before they speakBJPs Kirron Kher said intellectuals and writers did not think of returning their awards when thousands of Kashmiri Pandits fled the Kashmir Valley and after the antiSikh riots of 1984 that left thousands deadCongress leader and former minister Shashi Tharoor said there should not only be respect for differences but acceptance of differences You cannot sell Make in India abroad while condoning Hate in India at homeAkali Dals Prem Singh Chandumajra also targeted the Congress saying it displayed maximum tolerance during the 197577 Emergency rule when thousands of political prisoners were jailedAt the end of the debate however opposition members from the Congress RJD JDU Trinamool Congress and Left trooped out of the house