Vijayan, Revanth trade barbs as campaigning ends

A war of words between Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his Telangana counterpart Revanth Reddy turned acrimonious on Tuesday, the final day of campaigning for the April 9 Assembly polls.

The escalation came after Vijayan, responding to Reddy’s earlier remarks, used Malayalam expressions considered nearly derogatory, signalling strong disapproval of the Telangana CM’s comments.

Reddy, who was campaigning for the UDF in Pathanapuram in Kollam district, hit back swiftly, likening Vijayan to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

He said he would take any personal remarks from the senior leader as a “blessing” considering his age, but objected to what he described as insults directed at the people of Kerala. “But you cannot abuse our Kerala people,” he said, hours before campaigning drew to a close. The controversy began after Reddy had used the words “nee po mone Vijaya” in invoking a famous dialogue from superstar Mohanlal’s blockbuster movie “Narasimham” while referring to Vijayan on April 1 during a UDF campaign roadshow in Nemom constituency.