BJP MLA Ram Kadam on Monday, 5 October 2025, launched a sharp attack on senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh in Mumbai, accusing him of a persistent pattern of defaming Hinduism and dismissing his latest remarks on Sanatan Dharma as politically motivated. The confrontation follows Singh's public allegations that the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) have distorted Sanatan Dharma and deepened communal divisions across India.

What Digvijaya Singh Said

Digvijaya Singh, 79, posted a video on X in which he argued that the promotion of 'Hindutva' — a term he attributed to Vinayak Damodar Savarkar — by the RSS and VHP had created rifts between Hindus and Muslims, between Hindus and Sikhs, and between Hindus and Christians. 'India belongs to everyone. Unity in diversity is our strength,' Singh said. He also claimed that the word 'Hindu' does not appear in religious scriptures such as the Vedas, Upanishads, or Puranas. 'This is the Sanatan Dharma that the VHP and the RSS are distorting,' he alleged.

Singh is set to undertake a 'Sanatan Swabhiman Yatra', a foot march from Ujjain to Ayodhya, to protest what he described as the alleged exploitation of religion for political ends.

BJP's Sharp Rebuttal

Responding to Singh's remarks, Kadam said, 'This is the same Digvijaya Singh who has always tried to defame Hindus. He linked our sacred saffron colour with terrorism.' Kadam further alleged that Congress leaders had opposed the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya and had wanted the Supreme Court verdict to either go against Hindus or be delayed. 'They still hold such views, and that is why they appointed their lawyers in the country's highest judiciary,' he alleged.

Kadam Takes Aim at Thackeray Protest and EVMs

Kadam also reacted to a joint protest march on Sunday led by Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray towards the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) headquarters. The march targeted Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Kadam dismissed the protest as theatrics, saying, 'Was the Thackeray brothers' protest a protest or a fancy dress competition?'

He went further, pointing out that these same opposition leaders had demanded the removal of duplicate voter names approximately 11 months ago, in November 2025, and argued that the Election Commission was now doing precisely that. On electronic voting machines (EVMs), Kadam noted that the technology was introduced under a Congress government, and that Uddhav Thackeray had won municipal elections for 30 years using the same machines.

MPSC Protest and Sharad Pawar Faction Allegations

The BJP MLA also commented on the ongoing agitation by Maharashtra Public Service Commission (MPSC) aspirants in Pune, which entered its fifth day on Monday. Kadam said the state government, under Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, had accepted the students' demands with '100 per cent support'. However, he alleged that leaders from the Sharad Pawar faction were infiltrating the protest movement for political gains. 'This movement is not of the students; it is of the Sharad Pawar faction,' he claimed. The agitation has seen three groups emerge amid disagreements over the range of demands raised by aspirants.

The escalating political rhetoric across the Sanatan Dharma debate, electoral roll controversy, and MPSC protests signals a charged period for Maharashtra's political landscape ahead of upcoming civic and state-level contests.