Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday made an emotional pitch, saying he was “deeply pained” by alleged abuses hurled at his mother during the Voter Adhikar Yatra in Bihar. He, however, cautioned, “The people of Bihar will never pardon them,” while he might forgive the RJD and Congress.
In his first reaction to the alleged abuses, Modi lashed out at the Opposition parties over the recent incident in Darbhanga and said using expletives against his mother was nothing for those who insult ‘Mother India’, and that they should be punished.
“My late mother had nothing to do with politics, so what was her fault; why was she abused?” he said, with his voice choking with emotion. The Prime Minister made this statement while addressing a gathering in Delhi, virtually launching the ‘Bihar Rajya Jeevika Nidhi Sahkari Sangh Limited’, a cooperative initiative that aims to provide easy access to funds at affordable interest rates to women's self-help groups.
“I may forgive them for once, but the people of this country have never brooked any insult to one’s mother... It is now the duty of every son of Bihar to hold the RJD-Congress combine accountable for their conduct. In every town and street, wherever their leaders go, they must get the message loud and clear that insult to mothers and sisters will not be tolerated,” the Prime Minister said.
“Mothers and sisters must also come out on the streets to demand an explanation from the RJD-Congress combine for the reprehensible occurrence and tell them that this would not be tolerated. This attitude of holding women in contempt must be reined in,” he added.
“Bihar is the land of Maa Janki... It has always shown respect to women. My mother was abused from the dais of the RJD-Congress combine... I had never imagined such a thing would happen... It was an insult to the mothers and daughters of Bihar... People of the State will never forgive them,” Modi said.
The Prime Minister highlighted the role played by women voters of the State in ousting the RJD from power, alleging that “mothers and sisters were the worst sufferers of the lawlessness that prevailed when they were in power”.
“The Government then protected murderers and rapists... Mothers and sisters used to live in terror until their menfolk returned home unharmed,” he said.
“Since mothers and sisters have played a major role in defeating the RJD-led alliance again and again, it is now hell bent upon taking revenge on the women of the state,” said Modi, who also claimed that the Darbhanga incident was reflective of the ‘misogyny’ of the opposition coalition. “Their mindset makes them treat women as objects of exploitation and oppression,” he said.
The Prime Minister, who quoted a Bhojpuri proverb that asserted the belief that one’s mother was superior to gods and goddesses, also referred to the upcoming festivals of Navratri and Chhath.
“The Congress-RJD must be asked to apologise to saat-bahini and Chhathi Maiya,” said Modi, referring to the belief that Goddess Durga had seven sisters and the practice of worshipping the Sun God in a feminine form.
Last week, a person had screamed an expletive into the mic at a small podium erected on the outskirts of Darbhanga by a local Congress leader, who claimed that no party functionary of consequence was present at the time of the incident.
The accused, a 25-year-old resident of Darbhanga, has been arrested, but tempers continue to be frayed with the BJP hitting the streets on the issue and its workers exchanging fisticuffs with Congress leaders at the opposition party’s state headquarters.
BJP leaders have also been insisting on an apology from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who had led the recently concluded ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’, and RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav, but both maintained they have nothing to do with the incident since the abuse was hurled in their absence by a person not known to them.
The Prime Minister also fondly recalled that his mother had “appreciated my spirit when I told her I wanted to devote my life to serving the nation and let me off the responsibilities of family”.
Using the expression ‘naamdar’ (people with big names) to underscore the alleged elitist disposition of leaders such as Gandhi and Yadav, Modi said, “They have been uncomfortable ever since this son of a poor mother rose to power. They resent the rise of women and the backward classes alike. A reason why they spare no opportunity to belittle Droupadi Murmu, the country’s first woman President.”
The 75-year-old leader also made an indirect reference to acerbic language (tu-tadak) used by Rahul Gandhi, 20 years his junior, during the fortnight-long yatra taken out in protest against special intensive revision of electoral rolls in Bihar, ahead of assembly polls.
Meanwhile, Bihar BJP president Dilip Jaiswal was moved to tears when Modi voiced anguish over the Darbhanga incident.
Jaiswal watched the function, addressed by the Prime Minister through video conference, at the party’s State headquarters here. He was seen wiping his eyes when Modi spoke about the incident.
“The incident has brought disrepute to Bihar. We cannot accept insult to the mother of anyone, least of all the prime minister,” Jaiswal, a former Stateminister, said.
“The PM’s mother died some time back. She was not into politics. She never even visited his official residence. Thinking of all these things, I was moved to tears,” he said.
Meanwhile, Stateminister Shravan Kumar, who belongs to JD(U), said, “The insult to the PM’s mother is a deplorable incident. The people of Bihar will never accept such behaviour.”