'Tried to pull BJP's leg': DK Shivakumar 'apologises' after RSS anthem row; says 'Gandhi family cannot be questioned by anyone'

NEW DELHI: Karnataka deputy chief minister and state Congress chief DK Shivakumar on Tuesday clarified his stance on reciting the RSS anthem in the Assembly, saying he was trying to "pull BJP's leg," but if anyone has been hurt, he feels sorry for them."I just commented and tried to pull their (BJP) leg. Some of my friends are taking a political leap, trying to misuse it and cause confusion among the public... I don't want to hurt their feelings. If anyone has been hurt, I feel sorry for them," news agency ANI quoted Shivakumar as saying.The deputy CM also said that he remains a loyal Congressman."I would like to seek an apology to all of them. The Gandhi family cannot be questioned by anyone. I am a born Congressman. I will die as a Congressman. I have a lot of followers and friends across party lines, in different political parties. I don't want to hurt anyone," he said.Earlier, Congress MLC B K Hariprasad had demanded an apology from Shivakumar for singing the RSS anthem in the state assembly.However, minister HC Mahadevappa said singing the RSS anthem does not mean Shivakumar "is joining the BJP."Hariprasad questioned who Shivakumar was trying to please by reciting a song linked to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, an organisation "banned thrice in independent India."Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, the MLC claimed, "No one will object if he sings the RSS anthem as deputy chief minister because the government does not belong to a party but to seven crore people of Karnataka—RSS, Jamat-e-Islami, Talibanis, and various others. But he is not supposed to sing it as the Congress state president."Shivakumar took everyone by surprise on August 21 by singing the RSS anthem during a discussion in the state Assembly on the stampede near Chinnaswamy Stadium, which claimed the lives of 11 people."If he sings as Congress state president, then he must apologise. It’s not proper to sing the prayer of an organisation that killed Mahatma Gandhi," Hariprasad alleged.Taking a swipe at Shivakumar, he alleged, "He has many faces—a farmer, quarry owner, educationist, businessman, industrialist, politician. He may be this one also (RSS worker)."Hariprasad stressed that Congress members cannot compromise on party ideology and maintained that any association with the RSS was "not proper."Karnataka social welfare minister Mahadevappa and Mysuru MLA Tanveer Sait claimed that singing the RSS anthem in the Assembly does not mean Shivakumar "is joining the BJP."Speaking to reporters in Mysuru, Mahadevappa said, "He (Shivakumar) has only asserted that he too is a Hindu. Congress will continue to fight against that (RSS) ideology. Those who support secularism, democracy, and the Constitution will oppose it (RSS ideology)."He further added that one should "condemn religious extremism and any organisation, including the RSS, that is harmful to democracy, the Constitution, and the majority of the country."Tanveer Sait said, "Just because Shivakumar sang the RSS anthem does not mean he is in favour of the BJP."(With agency inputs)