Digvijaya’s praise for BJP, RSS sparks controversy

Former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister and Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh has triggered a fresh controversy on Saturday after he shared an old black-and-white photograph of Prime Minister Narendra Modi seated on the floor near BJP veteran LK Advani at a Gujarat event in the 1990s and heaped praise on the organisational strength of the BJP and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and highlighting Modi’s rise from an ordinary party worker to

Prime Minister.

The former Madhya Pradesh chief minister’s post is being interpreted by many as a pointed message to top leadership ahead of the crucial Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting that decided on its agitational plan against the scrapping of MGNREGA from January 5. The BJP was quick to latch on to Singh’s remarks to hit out at the Congress, saying his praise was an “open dissent” against Rahul Gandhi’s leadership.

Just before the meeting, Singh, in a post on X, said, “I found this picture on the Quora  site. It is very impressive. The way grassroots swayamsevaks (workers) of the RSS and workers of the Jan Sangh/BJP sit on the floor at the feet of leaders and go on to become the Chief Minister of a State and the Prime Minister of the country shows the power of the organisation. Jai Siya Ram.” The senior Congress leader shared an old photo of Modi from the 1990s when he was just a normal karyakarta (party worker).

In the throwback image, a young Modi is seen sitting on the floor near BJP veteran LK Advani, who is seated on a chair. Referring to PM Modi, the former Madhya Pradesh chief minister praised how grassroots workers who once sat on the floor could grow within the Sangh-BJP ecosystem and become Chief Minister and Prime Minister. The picture, which Singh called “impactful”, was from an event in Gujarat. As criticism mounted, Singh issued a firm clarification, stating that his remarks were being misunderstood.

“In fact, I praised the party organisation. You people have misunderstood things. I am a staunch opponent of the BJP and the RSS,” Singh clarified on his post after the meeting. As media persons swarmed Singh and prodded him to speak further, he said, “You have misunderstood. I have only praised the organisation. I have and will always be opposed to the RSS, and prime minister’s policies.”

Asked further, he said, “Whatever I had to say, I have stated in the CWC.” “We have to strengthen the organisation. Praising the organisation is not bad. In this vast country, if you see my tenure as chief minister and party president, I have functioned with decentralisation,” Singh also said.

The BJP, on the other hand, targeted Rahul Gandhi over Singh’s tweet. Taking a swipe at the Congress, BJP national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi alleged, “It is because our Narendra Modi is ‘guddri ke lal’ (a diamond in the rug) and their leader is ‘Jawahar ke lal’ (great grandson of Jawaharlal Nehru). Since our Narendra Modi has risen to top from bottom, he is taking the party (BJP) also to the top from bottom.” “Since their leader is ‘Jawahar ke lal’ who is now “side down from up”, he is bringing his party upside down,” Trivedi told a press conference. Another BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari said on X, “Digvijay Singh openly dissents against Rahul Gandhi.”  “He makes it clear that under Rahul Gandhi the Congress organisation has collapsed. Congress vs Congress on display,” he added.

Singh’s posts come amid challenging times in state politics. Singh, a former two-time chief minister, is currently a Rajya Sabha member whose tenure is set to end on June 21 next year and a third term appears unlikely. Both Kamal Nath and Meenakshi Natarajan are already in the queue for Rajya Sabha and could be the frontrunners for his seat. Besides, Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Jitu Patwari and the leader of the legislative party, Umang Singhar, are also considered to be “anti-Digvijay” leaders.

Meanwhile, the Congress on Saturday announced a nationwide campaign against the repeal of the MGNREGA from January 5, with Rahul Gandhi accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “single-handedly destroying” the UPA-era legislation and claimed it was an attack on the democratic structure that will ruin the rural economy. Announcing the plan at a press conference, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, along with Rahul Gandhi, said their agitation will be similar to the pushback against the three farm laws, which eventually forced the Narendra Modi government to roll them back. After a nearly three-hour meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the first one after the Bihar poll debacle, Kharge said the party will lead the ‘MGNREGA Bachao Abhiyan’ from January 5, and a detailed plan will be announced soon under which rallies will be held across the country.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, alleged that the prime minister carried out a devastating attack on states and the poor, “much like demonetisation”. “The prime minister single-handedly destroyed MGNREGA without asking his Cabinet, and without studying the matter,” he said.