New Delhi: The controversy surrounding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s comment about Rajiv Gandhi being “corrupt No.1” is refusing to die down. After AICC chief Rahul Gandhi and other senior Congress leaders took a shot at the PM for his statement, leaders from other notable political parties across the state sharpened their talons and followed suit.
The list of opposition leaders who took to Twitter to vent their rage featured big names such as West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav and Congress leader Sam Pitroda.
It can be recalled that on Saturday, during a rally in Uttar Pradesh, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had targetted former prime minister and father of Rahul Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi regarding allegations against him in the Bofors scandal, in response to Rahul’s constant comments about the Rafale deal. “Your father was termed Mr Clean by his courtiers, but his life ended as bhrashtachari no 1,” Modi had said, causing an uproar across the country in the hours following.
Having been busy with her campaign, Mamata at first, apologised for making her statement a little late and then proceeded to slam “‘Expiry PM’ Modiji” for his comments against the late former prime minister. She said that his remark was unfortunate and defended Rajiv Gandhi saying that he “dedicated himself & laid down his life for the motherland”. She condemned the “language used & the audacity of such a statement”.
Taking his turn, SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said that it is “basic humanity to respect the martyred”, regardless of whether or not there is an election. He then added that the PM’s statement indicated the “levels to which people can stoop for the sake of clinging to power”.
Even PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti slammed the Prime Minister saying that Rajiv Gandhi “lost his life serving our country” and that he “was a true patriot” who doesn’t need a “certificate from those who lynch in the name of religion”. “Malicious attempts to malign a person who’s passed away shows political discourse has reached its nadir,” she tweeted.
Terming Modi’s comment as baseless, Congress leader Sam Pitrodia expressed his shame at being a Gujarati because of the comment. “I am a Gujarati from mahatma Gandhi s and Sardar Patel’s soil. I can not believe that our PM Modi is also from the same soil. What is wrong with him? How can he go so low? Is he rattled? (sic),” he said in a tweet.
Other leaders who called out the Prime Minister for his statement include MNS chief Raj Thackeray, Rajasthan Congress president Sachin Pilot and Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy who tweeted, “PM @narendramodi’s comments against former PM #RajivGandhi are not only despicable and highly condemnable, but also reflect the PM’s state of mind. Fear and frustration have taken over his judgement. #ShameOnPMModi.”
