The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday distanced itself from an online event organised by its party leader involving the chairperson of the Republican Hindu Coalition in the United States, saying that it did not support or oppose any candidates in the upcoming presidential elections in the country.
The presidential polls in the United States are scheduled to take place on November 5. While Vice President Kamala Harris is the Democratic Party’s candidate, former President Donald Trump is representing the Republican Party.
The Republican Hindu Coalition was founded in 2015 to be the “unique bridge” between the Hindu-American community and Republican policymakers, as per the group’s website.
On Wednesday, Vijay Chauthaiwale, who heads the BJP’s foreign affairs unit, said that an online meeting being organised by former Delhi MLA Vijay Jolly belonging to his party with Shalabh Kumar, the chairperson of the Republican Hindu Coalition, had nothing to do with the Hindutva party.
“It has been brought to my notice that Shri Vijay Jolly, self proclaimed ‘senior BJP leader’ is organising online meeting supporting one of the two main presidential candidates of the US elections,” Chauthaiwale said on social media. “BJP has nothing to do with this event.”
Chauthaiwale said that India’s ruling party had been “very clear” that the presidential elections in the United States was an internal matter. “BJP is not supporting or opposing any candidate in that country,” he added.
Jolly, who represented the Saket Assembly constituency in Delhi, told The Hindu that he was organising the meeting under the aegis of the Delhi Study Circle, which was a bipartisan forum.
“Thus, it has nothing to do with the BJP or any party in the US,” the newspaper quoted him as saying.
He said that “no one should have the audacity” to question his party credentials and that he had been with the party since 1980.
“Moreover, Mr Shalabh Kumar has been known to the BJP for long time and was instrumental in arranging a visit of four Republican Congressmen to meet then Chief Minister of Gujarat Shri Narendra Modi ji, back when he was persona non grata in the US,” The Hindu quoted him as saying.
He added: “These Republican Congressmen had also extended an invitation to Modiji, despite the attitude taken by the US State Department at that time.”
In 2005, Washington had denied Prime Minister Narendra Modi a diplomatic visa and revoked his existing business/tourist visa for what it called as the “comprehensive failure” on his part to control the 2002 Gujarat riots as the chief minister at the time.
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