According to a report by The Hindu, Indian National Congress MP Shashi Tharoor slammed the BJP for the surge in mob-lynching deaths since the party’s ascendancy following the 2014 election. He accused Modi's party of preaching a Hinduism that was a “narrow political ideology” with no connection to its core religious beliefs.

Mr. Tharoor, who was addressing a session organised by the All India Professional Congress (AIPC) in the city, criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah for his push to impose Hindi as a common language over regional ones, saying Mr. Shah’s pitch for “one nation one language” was dangerous for the unity of India.

Detailing the number of mob-lynching deaths since 2014, Mr. Tharoor said: “What have we seen in the past six years? It started with the killing of [IT professional] Mohsin Shaikh in Pune. Then Mohammad Akhlaq [in Dadri in Uttar Pradesh] was killed on suspicion of slaughtering his cow and consuming beef.”

 
Recounting the grisly killings of Tabrez Ansari and Junaid Khan, the MP said: “Is this our Bharat? Is this what Hindu Dharma says? I am a Hindu but not of this kind… Furthermore, the victims are being forced to chant ‘Jai Sri Ram’. It is an insult to the Hindu Dharma. It is an insult to Lord Rama that people are being killed using his name.”

 
Remarking that it was appalling that one election result - referring to the BJP’s 2014 Lok Sabha win - gave so much power to such elements to do anything and kill anyone. He observed that Pehlu Khan, a Muslim man murdered by cow vigilantes in Rajasthan, was lynched despite having a licence to carry cows for dairy farming.