"Did Ghazni live in his neighbourhood?" BJP's Shahnawaz Hussain slams Hamid Ansari

Shahnawaz Hussain added that to call someone who "attacked India's self-respect", an Indian is "unfortunate."

"Former Vice President Hamid Ansari is breaking a well-established high dignity. He's calling Ghazni an Indian. Did Ghazni live in his neighbourhood? Why is he distributing certificates like this? The one who destroyed Somnath, the one who looted gold, the one who attacked India's self-respect, he's calling him an Indian. This is unfortunate," he said.

BJP leader Gaurav Vallabh lashed out at Hamid Ansari said that the former Vice President have revealed a "narrow and divisive mindset."

"This is a narrow and divisive mindset. The same Mahmud Ghazni, who destroyed the Somnath temple and many other temples in India, and who is considered a looter, is being called an Indian by a former Vice President associated with the Congress party? You should check your understanding of history. For us, Chandragupta Maurya, Chhatrapati Shivaji, Emperor Ashoka, and Prithviraj Chauhan are symbols of Indian pride and honour, and true Indian warriors," he said.

"Such statements are not good for the country, especially coming from someone who has previously held the position of Vice President of the country," he added.

Bihar minister Ashok Choudhary said, "What we read in history or what was taught in NCERT books was also from the Indian government. When he was the Vice President, he should have had it changed... How would a student know? They learn from books... Why didn't he protest and have it removed from history books that Mahmud of Ghazni was not an invader but an Indian? He just wants to say something to stay in the news."

The backlash comes after a clip of Hamid Ansari surfaced on social media in which he claimed that the foreign invaders, such as Mahmud Ghazni and Ibrahim Lodhi, often portrayed as foreign invaders in history books, were actually Indians. (ANI)