Audience not loud enough in saying Bharat Mata Ki Jai, minister angry at Kerala crowd
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During Awake Youth for Nation, Youth Conclave in Kozhikode, Kerala, Union Minister Meenakshi Lekhi expressed dissatisfaction with a section of the audience for not chanting the "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" slogan as loud as she wanted despite her repeated requests.
Concluding her speech, she said "Bharat Mata Ki" and expected the audience to chat "Jai". When the volume of the chant was not as high as she wanted, she said it was not enough and called for the chant again and again. However, the chant from the audience remained the same.
Visibly annoyed, Lekhi questioned whether Bharat (India) was not the mother of the attendees and even suggested that a woman who hesitated to raise the slogan leave the venue. "Is Bharat only my mother or your mother as well? Tell me... Tell me... Is there any doubt? No doubt?... Enthusiasm needs to be expressed," emphasised Meenakshi Lekhi, Union Minister of State for External Affairs & Culture.
She singled out a woman in an attempt to get her to chant the slogan loudly but the woman stood silently.
Pointing at a woman in the audience, Lekhi said, "The lady in yellow (dress) can stand up. Don't look at the sides. This is how I am going to speak to you. I am going to ask you a straight question. Bharat is not your mother?... Why this attitude?" She reiterated the slogan, expressing disappointment with the left side of the audience.
When the woman in yellow remained idle, Lekhi said "I think you should leave the house".
The minister clarified that those who do not take pride in the nation and feel embarrassed to speak about India need not be part of the youth conclave.
The video of the incident has gone viral on Twitter. Many on Reddit called the minister's behaviour similar to a school principal. Some said no one should force anyone to chant anything. Others said her behaviour shows nationalism and not patriotism.
Lekhi later told the media that they were young people who were sometimes shy and needed to be brought out of their shells.