Haridwar (Uttarakhand): Furious over Kamal Hassan's "Hindu extremism" remark, the priests from Uttarakhand's Haridwar have demanded an immediate apology from the actor-turned-politician and asked him to take back his statement.
"Kamal Hassan has become senile. Can Hindu's ever be terrorists? Hindus worship Lord Rama, who has always preached non-violence. Kamal Hassan should be ashamed, " said a priest from the Hindu pilgrimage site.
He added, "I feel all these people are associated with Pakistan. They speak in the language of Pakistan. Kamal Hassan should apologise to the country."
Another priest blamed Muslims for having terrorised the country for decades and said, "the first few terrorists of this country were Mohammad Bin Qasim, Aurangzeb, and Babar, who attacked and looted the country."
"It is unfortunate that Nathuram Godse was a Hindu," added the priest.
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Addressing an election campaign at Aravakurichi in Tamil Nadu on Sunday night Hassan said, “free India’s first terrorist was a Hindu,” referring to Nathuram Godse who killed Mahatma Gandhi in 1948.
The actor-politician said he was one of those “proud Indians” who desired an India with equality and where the “three colours” in the Tricolour, an obvious reference to different faiths, “remained intact.”
He said, “I am not saying this because this is a Muslim-dominated area, but I am saying this before a statue of Gandhi. Free India’s first terrorist was a Hindu, his name is Nathuram Godse. There it [terrorism, apparently] starts.”
