Gehlot accuses BJP-RSS of distorting history, criticizes govt on farmer protests

Former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Friday accused members of the BJP and RSS of launching a campaign to distort the historical facts surrounding India’s freedom struggle. Gehlot’s remarks followed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge’s statement that those who distort history will never be able to make it.

In a post on X, Gehlot claimed that the BJP-RSS is trying to alter the history of India’s freedom movement. He pointed out that several regimes with similar ideologies had previously attempted to rewrite history, but their efforts were dismissed by historians.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="hi" dir="ltr">कांग्रेस अध्यक्ष श्री मल्लिकार्जुन खड़गे ने कहा कि जो लोग अपने इतिहास को तोड़ने-मरोड़ते हैं वो कभी इतिहास नहीं बना पाएंगे।<br><br>BJP-RSS के लोगों ने आजादी की लड़ाई एवं इसके ऐतिहासिक तथ्यों से खिलवाड़ करने का अभियान चला रखा है। इतिहास और वर्तमान में तमाम ऐसे उदाहरण हैं जब सत्ता में आए…</p>&mdash; Ashok Gehlot (@ashokgehlot51) <a href="https://twitter.com/ashokgehlot51/status/1880176730159116760?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 17, 2025</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

Gehlot emphasized that leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru, Sardar Patel, Bhagat Singh, and Maulana Azad made invaluable contributions to the freedom struggle. He asserted that no matter how hard these groups try to distort history, the truth would remain unchanged.

He also drew a parallel to Pakistan and Bangladesh, where leaders like Zia-ul-Haq tried to distort history, falsely claiming victory in the 1971 war with India. In Bangladesh, efforts are being made to erase the contributions of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, which Gehlot argued undermines the credibility of these nations on the world stage.

Gehlot also expressed concern over the deteriorating health of farmer leader Jagdeep Singh Dallewal, who has been on a hunger strike for 51 days, demanding attention from the Centre and Punjab government. He criticized the governments for their lack of responsiveness, linking the current protests to the previous deaths of over 700 farmers during the agitation against the three farm laws. Gehlot questioned why the government was unwilling to engage with farmers’ representatives to resolve the issues.