Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress Sam Pitroda RACISM REMARK: Speaking about diversity of India, Sam Pitroda said people in the “East look like Chinese and South look like Africans.
New DElhi: In another blow to the Congress party, just as it is dealing with the fallout from the ‘inheritance tax’ controversy, Chairman of Indian Overseas Congress Sam Pitroda has sparked another major controversy by expressing his views on the diversity of India. He referred to how people in the East look like ‘Chinese‘ and those in the South look like ‘African‘. While discussing how India is a shining example of democracy in the world, Pitroda stated that the countrymen have “survived 75 years in a very happy environment where people could live together, with only a few fights here and there”.
Pitroda, in an interview to a news outlet, expresssing his views on democracy in India said, “We have survived 75 years in a very happy environment where people could live together, leaving aside few fights here and there. We could hold a country together as diverse as India, where people on east look like Chinese, people on West look like Arab, people on North look like white and maybe people on South look like Africans.”
He further added that the people of India respect different languages, religions, food and customs which varies from region to region. “That’s the India that I believe in, where everybody has a place and everybody compromises little bit,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Congress party has separated itself from Pitroda’s controversial remark. Jairam Ramesh took to X (formerly Twitter) and wrote, “The analogies drawn by Mr. Sam Pitroda in a podcast to illustrate India’s diversity are most unfortunate and unacceptable. The Indian National Congress completely dissociates itself from these analogies.”
The analogies drawn by Mr. Sam Pitroda in a podcast to illustrate India’s diversity are most unfortunate and unacceptable. The Indian National Congress completely dissociates itself from these analogies.
— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) May 8, 2024
Earlier, Pitroda stoked a controversy while speaking about the concept of inheritance tax prevailing in America and said these are issued that will need to be discussed.
“In America, there is an inheritance tax. If one has 100 million USD worth of wealth and when he dies he can only transfer 45 per cent to his children, 55 per cent is grabbed by the government. That’s an interesting law. It says you in your generation, made wealth and you are leaving now, you must leave your wealth for the public, not all of it, half of it, which to me sounds fair,” Pitroda had said.
After the comments snowballed into a controversy Pitroda sought to downplay the issue saying he had only cited inheritance tax in the US as an example.
“Who said 55 per cent will be taken away? Who said something like this should be done in India? Why is BJP and media in panic? I mentioned US inheritance tax in the US only as an example in my normal conversation on TV. Can I not mention facts? I said these are the kind of issues people will have to discuss and debate. This has nothing to do with policy of any party including congress,” Pitroda said in his post on X.
However, the Congress officially distanced itself from Pitroda’s comments saying that they did not reflect the view of the party at all times.
(With Agency Inputs)
