Saying 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' is different from worshipping Allah or God: Najeeb Jung

New Delhi: As the debate on nationalism continues to rock the country, Delhi Lt Governor Najeeb Jung has said that he has no problem in chanting Bharat Mata ki jai.

Jung said, he would say with pride Bharat Mata ki jai and everyone needs to understand that there is a difference between worshipping Allah or God and country.

The Delhi LT Governor made the statement while giving an interview to India Today.

He also maintained that nobody can be forced to say anything. Jung maintained that if someone refuses to say something he/she cannot be labelled as anti-national.

"People are losing the nuances of the words. Saying Bharat Mata ki Jai is different from worshipping any deity or Allah or god. It's a matter of pride for a person belonging to any country to love his country and, therefore, would be absolutely happy to say 'madre-watan zindabad', 'Bharat Mata ki jai' or whatever," he said.

While commenting on Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' union leader Kanhaiya Kumar, Jung said he won't admire him and the JNU student needs guidance.

Expressing his views on the odd-even formula, the Delhi Lt Governor said, during the first phase it made no impact on pollution, however, there was less of congestion on roads.

He, however, said that odd-even formula can't be implied on a permanent basis in the national capital.