New Delhi [India], November 23 (ANI): The Congress party on Thursday criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party after their senior leader, Rahul Gandhi, received a show cause notice from the Election Commission of India over his remarks targeted at Prime Minister Modi in a public rally. The notice came after the BJP on Wednesday wrote a complaint to the poll body about Rahul Gandhi using derogatory remarks about PM Modi in his rallies.
The ECI asked Rahul Gandhi to explain why the action be not taken against him in the matter till November 25. “Accordingly, you are requested to provide your explanation, on the allegation made and to show causes as to why action as deemed fit for alleged violation of MCC and relevant penal provisions is not initiated by the Commission. Your reply, if any, be reached by 18.00 hrs. of November 25, 2023. If no reply is received by then action deemed fit will be taken by the Commission,” the letter stated.
Responding to it, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said that it’s not a big deal and that the party will reply to the notice. “Let them send (notice to Rahul Gandhi) we will answer it. It is not a big deal. There has not been any such severe commentary on anyone. But since the elections are going on, hype is being created. We will reply to the notice… The way they are trying to scare in the elections today is not right. If they want to save the democracy, then they should give a level playground. Instead, ED, CBI, etc are being used,” Kharge said.
Later, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, while campaigning for Congress in Rajasthan on the last day of campaigning, said that the words used by his party leader were trending on social media platforms and asked whether the ECI would serve notices to the general public. “It was also said by all the people…Will they send a notice to everyone, as it is trending on social media? Rahul Gandhi said the people were already fighting,” Baghel said.
Moreover, opposition leader Supriya Sule said, “Rahul Gandhi is a strong & honest leader. I am confident that he will give a dignified and honest answer. He is a fighter. He can afford to be fearless because he is honest.”
Earlier in their letter to the EC, the BJP wrote, “Comparing a prime minister to a ‘Jaibkatra’ (pickpocket) and ‘Pannauti’ is most unbecoming of a senior leader and is a symptom of plummeting levels of political discourse.” “Calling any person for that instance a Jaibkatra not only amounts to vicious abuse and personal attack but also a character assassination of that person against whom such remark has been made with a clear intent to harm his reputation and mislead the public,” the BJP letter added.
Earlier Rahul Gandhi while addressing a rally in Barmer claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s presence in the Narendra Modi stadium was the reason behind India’s World Cup final loss.
“Our guys were playing well, they would have won the world cup. But ‘Panauti’ made us lose. The TV guys won’t tell you this but people know,” Rahul said while campaigning at Rajasthan’s Barmer on Monday. (ANI)
“Remarks against PM Modi ‘hyped’ in view of elections”: Congress chief Kharge over ECI notice to Rahul Gandhi
Nagpur (Maharashtra) [India], November 23 (ANI): Reacting to the Election Commission of India’s show cause notice to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his remarks on Prime Minister Modi in an election rally, party chief Mallikarjun Kharge said that the whole remarks issue was hyped up in view of the upcoming elections. Speaking to the media on Thursday in Nagpur, Kharge said, “The ECI can send the notice. There is no issue with it. This whole remark issue has been reiterated and hyped up in the face of the elections. We will respond to their notice.”
This comes after the Election Commission of India on Thursday issued show cause notice to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his ‘Jaibkatra’ (Pickpocket) and ‘Pannauti’ remarks on Prime Minister Modi in an election rally. The BJP wrote a complaint to ECI on November 22 about Rahul Gandhi using derogatory remarks about PM Modi in his rallies.
Earlier, Rahul Gandhi, while addressing a rally in Barmer, claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s presence in the Narendra Modi stadium was the reason behind India’s World Cup final loss. “Our guys were playing well. They would have won the World Cup. But ‘Panauti’ made us lose. The TV guys won’t tell you this but people know,” Rahul said while campaigning at Rajasthan’s Barmer on Monday.
The BJP, in its complaint to the ECI, asked to take appropriate action against the Congress leader. “It will spoil the electoral environment, where abusing, using objectionable and offensive language to defame respectable individuals and spreading false news will become inevitable,” the BJP said.
When questioned about what the Congress National President thought about the claims of the Congress party in Rajasthan being involved in riots, corruption and the infamous red diary, Kharge said that it was all being said due to the elections. “The answer to this has been given in Rajasthan. All this is being said due to the elections. What the BJP is trying to do in elections is not right. If the BJP wants to save the democracy, then do so by giving it a level playing field. Instead, the BJP is trying to scare people through agencies like the ED, CBI and CBC,” he said.
“In this way, the BJP is trying to scare people who support the Congress party. You cannot run a democracy by scaring people like this,” Kharge said. On being asked what Kharge thinks about the BJP saying that Congress will never be able to form a government in Rajasthan, the Congress chief said, “It is their hope that we will not form a government there, but we insist on it and will surely form it.” (ANI)
