Bengaluru: On a single day, the BJP – both at the Centre and the state of Karnataka – struck down two major events related to the minority community. One, the triple talaq was successfully invalided and two, the Tipu Jayanti (Tipu Sultan's birth anniversary celebrations) in Karnataka was revoked.

It might be a coincidence, but many say the thought process behind it is deep, good enough to lay a foundation for something greater and bigger, probably a step towards abrogation of Articles 35A and 370.

Sripad Renu, a Congress spokesperson said, “We have been saying that the BJP wants to change the Indian Constitution. They are only moving towards that. They want to remove the word ‘secular’ from the Constitution and they want to create a Hindu Rashtra. In fact, this has been the stated aim of the RSS. They are moving steadily towards that. The revocation of Tipu Jayanti and Triple Talaq are nothing but cosmetic surgeries. They don’t want to help India in the long run. We are anyway a Hindu country because the majority is Hindus. We are not against Hindus or Hinduism. Our stance is to live and let live.”

However, the BJP refuses to endorse the allegations of a Hindu rashtra.

“We want to reduce terrorism in the valley. Abrogation of articles 35A and 370 have been in the pipeline for a long time now. The issue of terrorism in Kashmir is not against any particular religion. One issue relates to security and the other relates to women empowerment,” said Shreenath Sheshadri, a BJP spokesperson.

While those were the reactions from the two national parties, here is what a political expert Shivananda has to say.

“These moves can’t be a step towards the greater goal of abrogation of articles in question. Triple Talaq was pending for a long time. The move to revoke it was welcomed by many. It is a step towards women empowerment. I don’t know if it has a hidden agenda. About cancellation of Tipu Jayanti, the BJP is certainly scoring a political point. It is an appeasing tactic and nothing beyond it,” Shivananda opined.