Tarun Vijay , former BJP MP and Editor of Panchjanya , an RSS published journal, has expressed deep regret for his remarks that Indians could not be racists as they lived with “black” South Indians. Excerpts from an interview with The Hindu :
Do you think your comments that Indians could not be racists (aired on Al-Jazeera) were well thought-out?
I was single-handedly facing a barrage of accusations against India and Indian people for being racist. I said we firmly stand with African friends, want them to feel secure and immediate action is needed. I share their pain but this kind of incident is bad behaviour of ugly minds. We, in India, too, face a lot of discrimination on the basis of caste, class, religion, language, and community. But it’s misleading to suggest we’re all racist as a people. That was my basic point. And the path is to follow [is that of] Gandhi, Mandela and King.
Can you explain who is the ‘we’ that has been living with ‘black’ people from Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh?
We includes all of us. It means people from Kanyakumari to Kashmir and Tawang to Okha. I was responding to a person who was persistently attempting to prove India is a bad country for Africans.
My answer to him was — don't defame your motherland. From Tamil Nadu to Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra, we live together as one people. Unfortunately, I couldn’t find the right words to convey what I was trying to say and it ended up conveying exactly the opposite. It was an indefensible slip on my part.
No arguments there. And I immediately apologised on Twitter.
In your view, who are ‘black’ people in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka and Andhra?
No one; absolutely no one. The word ‘black’, as you watch the video, was not used in reference to Tamil Nadu or any other State — it was, like we say in Hindi — people of all colours are around us and we all live together. I misspoke and for that I feel great regret.
You have shown a particular interest in matters South Indian. Do you think your remarks have affected your credibility?
Initially, I felt it would. But the overwhelming support from common folk in Tamil Nadu is pouring in and that has given me hope. They know me better than any [other] politician. My work wasn't political and everyone from every party joined together for my campaigns for Thiruvalluvar — in Chennai and in New Delhi.
For the first time in Parliament, CPI, CPM, DMK, Congress, BJP and RSS leaders shared the same dais for a Thiruvalluvar programme. Late Chief Minister Jayalalithaa ji came out to help with the Thiruvalluvar statue at Haridwar and sent two senior Cabinet ministers to join us in the sending off ceremony in Chennai. And they all knew about my work.
Their help was amazing and unprecedented in Tamil Nadu’s history.
When did you realise that your comments would come back to bite you?
The next morning when the media came to ask for my reaction, I was shocked. I read it again and realised I had misspoken.
I immediately tweeted my apologies without waiting for a second. I felt, though, the last words and the context in the interview was mischievously deleted to make my sentence look more horrible and harsh.
But no matter, I owned up to my mistake.
How do you react to the Congress’s demand in Lok Sabha that an FIR should be registered against you for your comments?
Repentance is a Gandhian, and a universal value, accepted all over.
I didn't argue or blame anyone, but owned up to my mistake.
What they decide to do is their choice.
