Karnataka Minister Basvaraj Rayareddi on Monday defended his recent remarks praising Islam, saying there was nothing wrong with describing the religion as “great” and stressing that he did not intend to suggest that any other religion was inferior.
Rayareddi had earlier said, “Islam is the scientific and greatest religion in the world. I have a wish to go on Haj pilgrimage at least once.”
Clarifying his remarks, Rayareddi said he had spoken about certain values and ideals in Islam that he admired and that his comments should not be interpreted as criticism of other faiths.
What is wrong with saying that Islam is a great religion? I said that there are some great values and ideals in Islam. I did not say that any other religion is inferior. I only said that there are certain admirable qualities in Islam. That does not mean I said other religions are bad,” he said.
Rayareddi said all religions were great and that discussing the merits of one faith in a particular context did not amount to denigrating others.
“All religions are great. If that is what I said, what is wrong with it? This kind of discussion is not good for the Press. We speak about religions depending on the context. Every single religion is great. What is wrong with saying that? No religion is bad,” he said.