New Delhi, March 30 (IANS) Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Wednesday said that "chanting 'Bharat Mata Ki Jai' should not be a fashion but passion for every Indian".
"Nationalism is in the DNA of every true Indian. But it is a matter of concern if there is any baseless debate on patriotism and nationalism," the minister said while addressing the national conference of Chairman and Chief Executive Officers of the State Waqf Boards.
"Patriotism is not a part of compulsion but it's a part of passion," the minister added.
Naqvi also said that there was no need for distributing "certificates of nationalism and secularism".
His comments come in the wake of a controversy over chanting of the nationalist slogan, triggered when Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat said earlier this month that the youth should be made to chant it. Bhagwat later clarified that no one should be forced to chant the slogan.
The minister said that the Narendra Modi government was moving forward with "strong commitment" to over-all development of all sections of the society including minorities.
"Inclusive growth of Muslim community is our target and no negative agenda will succeed in the path of achieving this target," the minister said, adding that protection and development of Waqf properties was an important step in this regard.
There are 31 State Waqf Boards and 4,27,000 registered Waqf properties across the country besides other non-registered ones, he said, and expressed concern that Waqf boards in several states were under control of "Waqf mafia" due to which properties were not being utilised properly.
Naqvi said that even after the new Waqf Act, several states were not able to utilise Waqf properties for socio-economic-educational empowerment of the community.
"Several Waqf properties have been encroached by Waqf mafia. There is a need for a campaign on war-footing in this regard," he added.
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