Former Union Minister of State for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Ananthkumar Hegde yet again came into controversy when he made the “Constitution Change” remark. He is a member of parliament from Uttar Karnataka, a member of the BJP, and an RSS volunteer.
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The former minister, talking about getting the 400-seat majority in the coming Lok Sabha elections said the party needs 400 seats to “change the constitution”. He further elaborated on the need to get a bigger majority in Rajya Sabha as well as half of the states, pointing at the requirement for a constitutional amendment through a special majority. He quoted Prime Minister Narender Modi saying “Ab Ki Baar 400 Par”, further explaining the 400 seats requirement for a constitutional amendment.
BJP however has distanced itself from this statement calling the former minister’s remarks “his personal views”. BJP has also demanded an explanation from the former minister. This remark may cost the former minister his ticket for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. The BJP is looking to distance itself from members making hate speeches and controversial statements as seen by the likes of Member of Parliament Ramesh Bidhuri, Parvesh Sahib Singh, and Pragya Singh Thakur, who were excluded in the first list of 195 seats released by the BJP.
 "\"Constitution Change\" Remark By Former Union Minister May Cost Him His Poll Pass 87")
Source: NDTV
The Opposition is demanding an explanation from the prime minister urging him to break his silence over the matter. Ananthkumar Hegde is known for making controversial statements since 2018 talking about constitution change, criticizing the word Secular, claiming the Taj Mahal was originally a Shiv Mandir known as Tejo Mahalaya and even making derogatory comments on the Sabarimala temple allowing women.
The incident came into the picture amidst the ongoing seat-sharing discussion between the JDS(S) and the BJP over the 28 seats in Karnataka for which the BJP will release a second list soon.
Source: Kannada Oneindia
Only time will tell how the BJP and the Prime Minister react to this incident and what actions will be taken, as the BJP claims that winnability is only a factor and that the leadership will look closely at members who embarrass the leadership and make provocative comments.
Note: This article is originally written by Ayush Kumar
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