March 10, 2026 07:49 am (IST)
Follow us:
facebook-white sharing button
twitter-white sharing button
instagram-white sharing button
youtube-white sharing button
CEC Gyanesh Kumar faces black flags during Kalighat Temple visit in Kolkata amid TMC’s SIR protests | ‘Arrogance will be shattered’: PM Modi warns Mamata Banerjee over remarks on President Murmu | Bloodbath on Dalal Street! Sensex, Nifty crash amid escalating Middle East conflict | Iran appoints Mojtaba Khamenei as new supreme leader amid Middle East tension | Iranian drone strike near Dubai Intl. Airport's terminal forces emergency flight suspensions | 26-year-old Hindu man killed after Holi altercation with Muslim neighbour in Delhi’s Uttam Nagar; four arrested | Zohran Mamdani defends wife amid scrutiny over her 'support' for Palestinian cause | Explosions rock club in Kolkata’s Paikpara, locals claim bombs were stored inside | Iran conflict: White House says US could achieve ‘Operation Epic Fury’ objectives in 4–6 weeks | Sensex, Nifty tumble as global tensions and Dow selloff rattle Indian markets

Najma Heptullah clarifies her stand on Hindi-Hindu confusion

| | Aug 29, 2014, at 05:37 pm
New Delhi, Aug 29 (IBNS) Union Minority Affairs Minister Najma Heptullah, who was slammed by Opposition for endorsing the RSS view on India as a nation of Hindus by culture and national identify, has now clarified her position saying she meant Hindi and not Hindu while speaking on the issue.

Heptullah said her words were misinterpreted and what she said is Hindi and not Hindu.

"I said we are Indians, that is our nationality. I used the world Hindi, H I N D I because it is an Arabic word. I did not say  H I  N D U - Hindu. I said it outside the Parliament also," said the union minister.

Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Tariq Anwar flayed Heptullah saying "it is unfortunate if she has said something like this to remain as a minister."  "It is reprehensible and especially when she says she is from the family of Maulana Azad," said Anwar.

Earlier, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat had urged the Hindus to unite by breaking caste barriers and had harped on a Hindutva identity for the nation.

Bhagwat  said Hiduvta is the identity of the nation owing to the cultural practices of India.  

Support Our Journalism

We cannot do without you.. your contribution supports unbiased journalism

IBNS is not driven by any ism- not wokeism, not racism, not skewed secularism, not hyper right-wing or left liberal ideals, nor by any hardline religious beliefs or hyper nationalism. We want to serve you good old objective news, as they are. We do not judge or preach. We let people decide for themselves. We only try to present factual and well-sourced news.

Support objective journalism for a small contribution.