New Delhi, December 25: A day after Union Minister Nitin Gadkari made a controversial statement on ‘Demonetisation, he once again in the news for supporting former prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s ideology and commenting – ‘India is not a nation, it is a population’.

Addressing a gathering in Pune on Monday, the Union Minister stated, “India is a not a nation, it is a population. Every citizen in this country is a problem and question.” He pointed out that JL Nehru also said this and stressed that he doesn’t want the people to become a problem, but a solution. Gadkari's Latest: A Transgender Might Bear Children but a Project Won't Be Completed.

Through this statement, the Union Minister wanted to address the issues of people for raising questions on each matter, but not helping in solving them. Though on sociological terms the statement seems correct, being a politician and a BJP parliamentarian, his statement is contradictory.

Earlier on Sunday, he had stated that demonetisation was a wrong move and poor people were the worst sufferers. He had said Pune, “The poor people had to face a hard time when demonetisation happened. But when I ask them, even after all these issues, why are you happy? They say that this is because even the rich people are facing a tough time.”

Along with this he also criticised the Maharashtra minister for the slow development of the state and stated, “State’s urban development ministry is worthless. If you want to a development plan for Pune, hire a private agency. The ministry walks at a snail’s pace.”

Previously too, his videos surfaced in the public domain stating that he was confident that BJP would never come to power and so was asked to make fake promises. After his comments, Congress tweeted his remarks and Gadkari said that his words were twisted for political gain.

Now with this latest comment reiterating Nehru’s words, it would be interesting to see how the BJP and its allies react to it. Also, Congress’ reactions will also play an essential role as BJP secured defeat in three states – Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh – in the recently held Assembly elections.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 25, 2018 11:18 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).