Actor Prakash Raj says I am not anti-Hindu, I am anti-Modi

Actor Prakash Raj on Thursday said he was not anti-Hindu as alleged by critics but only anti-Modi.

“They say I am anti-Hindu but I say I am anti-Modi, anti-Amit Shah and anti-Hegde,” the actor said at the India Today South conclave in Hyderabad.

He was referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP president Amit Shah and BJP leader and Union minister Anant Kumar Hegde.

The actor’s statement comes a day after he tweeted that members of the Hindu right-wing Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) sprinkled “divine” cow urine on a stage to purify it after he had delivered a speech there during an event in Sirsi, Karnataka.

In Hyderabad, Prakash Raj went on to say that those who support “killers” cannot be called Hindus.

He said the Prime Minister remained silent when he appealed to him to speak out after some Modi supporters celebrated the killing of journalist Gauri Lankesh.

“A true Hindu cannot support such activity,” said Prakash Raj, a friend of Lankesh.

The actor’s remarks evoked protest from the BJP spokesman in Telangana, Krishna Sagar Rao, who was in the audience.

The actor defended his stand. “When you can call me anti-Hindu, I have every right to say you are not Hindu,” he said.