Battle is over. Your karma awaits you, tweets Rahul after Modi calls ex-PM ‘corrupt number 1'
A massive controversy has erupted over Prime Minister Narendra Modi comment in a poll rally in Pratapgarh in Uttar Pradesh that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi left the world as “bhrastachari number 1.”
Congress president Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi, and the Congress ally NCP have rapped Modi for such undignified attack against a dead person while Union Minister Prakash Javadekar defended the PM’s remark. UPA partners NCP and others too rapped Modi for his remarks against the former PM and termed it derogatory and shameful.
Rahul tweeted, “Modiji, The battle is over. Your karma awaits you. Projecting your inner beliefs about yourself onto my father won’t protect you. All my love and a huge hug.” Priyanka too slammed Modi and said, “The Prime Minister who insults martyrs by seeking vote in the name of their sacrifices yesterday crossed his limits by insulting the sacrifice of a noble man who gave his life for the country. The people of Amethi will reply as Rajiv sacrificed his life for them. Yes Modiji, the country never forgives cheating.”
On the other hand, Union Ministers Arun Jaitley and Prakash Javadekar tried to corner Rahul by asking why he should be rattled by corruption charges against his father and also raked up Rajiv’s comment on 1984 anti-Sikh pogrom. In a series of tweets, Jaitley said Rahul thinks that “dynast” does not have to answer any question even though he can attack Modi — ‘a man of utmost integrity’.
Jaitley tweeted, “Why is Rahul so disturbed if the integrity issues of the Rajiv Government are raised? Why did Ottavio Quattrocchi get kickbacks in Bofors? Who was the ‘Q’ connection? No reply has come.”
Jaitley said even former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi was also assassinated and yet the Congress is questioned about the Emergency and the Operation Blue Star.
Javadekar justified the PM’s statement by stating that the late PM had supported the killing of Sikhs in the 1984 riots. “What Modi said is correct, after the 1984 riots in which Sikhs were massacred, did Rajiv not support it? He had said, ‘when big trees fall the earth shakes’,” Javadekar said at a Press conference.
Also, he accused Rahul and Priyanka of abusing Modi after he spoke the truth about the former PM. “Yesterday as soon as the Prime Minister told the truth about Gandhi family and especially Rajivji, the brother-sister duo started abusing him. For a full year, they called an honest Prime Minister a thief, now they call him Hitler, merchant of death. It is the truth being spoken which forces them to indulge in abusive politics,” he said.
Accusing the Congress and its president Rahul of attempting to tarnish his image over the Rafale issue, Modi in a rally in Pratapgarh had said, “Your father was termed ‘Mr Clean’ by his courtiers, but his life ended as ‘Bhrastachari number 1’ (corrupt number 1).” The Prime Minister claimed that the Congress chief had admitted in an interview that his only aim is to tarnish the image of Modi.
Javadekar asserted that dynasts of the Congress were afraid of the truth and that is why the Congress president had tried to falsely accuse BJP of corruption in Rafale deal.
“The dynasts are afraid of the truth. Rahul tried to falsely accuse us in the Rafale deal for a full year but failed miserably. They are worried that BJP’s record is cleaner than theirs,” he said.
Former Union Minister P Chidambaram and other senior leaders of the Congress hit out at Prime Minister for the remarks on Rajiv, saying it showed his “desperation” and “fear of defeat”. In a series of tweets, the Former Union Finance Minister wondered if any religion sanctioned speaking ill of the dead.
Former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit who was very close to Rajiv expressed “shock and anger” over Modi’s remarks about Rajiv, saying if politics is not repaired, future generations will “not forgive us”. Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot accused Modi of defaming Congress leaders by levelling “baseless” allegations against them.
He asked, “Does it behove Modi to “insult” former Prime Minister Rajiv who sacrificed his life for unity and integrity of the country?” Claiming that Modi was “jolted” by the corruption allegations in the Rafale deal, Gehlot said the Congress will continue to rake up the issue till the Prime Minister is held accountable.
Gehlot said Modi has been continuously levelling allegations against Gandhis though no one from the family has been a Prime Minister in the past 30 years.
Indian Overseas Congress chief Sam Pitroda said the party is hurt by what the Prime Minister said. “Why did he say that? We are ashamed of the statement, I am a Gujarati too and come from Gandhiji’s state,” Pitroda said. “People of this state can lie so much and speak such lowly things, this saddens us. Normally the Prime Minister of a country speaks for the people”.
NCP leader Jayant Patil said Rajiv ushered in a technological revolution in the country. “I condemn Modi’s remarks against him. This is an insult of not just Rajiv but the information technology sector which he helped grow. I hope the Prime Minister henceforth will speak what is befitting his post,” Patil said.
Former NDA ally and now in UPA, RLSP leader Upendra Kushwaha too took on Modi and said the kind of statement being used by the PM suggest the culture of Modi and the party and cadre (RSS) to which he belongs.