Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge expressed his regret on Wednesday, a day after his remarks at a rally in Kerala sparked a political row, with the BJP demanding his apology. In a post on X, Kharge said his remarks had been “deliberately misinterpreted,” but added that he still expressed his remorse.
“It was never my intention to hurt the sentiments of the people of Gujarat for whom I have always had and will continue to have the utmost respect,” Karg said in the post.
His clarification on the controversy came a day after the BJP claimed that he had called Gujaratis “illiterate” during a rally in Kerala and sought an apology from the Congress MP.
According to the news agency PTIAt an election rally in Kerala’s Idukki district on Sunday, Karji said the people of the state are “educated and intelligent” and cannot be misled, unlike those who are “illiterate” in Gujarat and some other places.
Kharge’s comments sparked a major political storm on Tuesday. Senior BJP leader and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad asked Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to clarify whether they agree with Kharge’s statement.
“Do they agree with this statement? If Rahul Gandhi has any meaning, he should distance himself from this statement, condemn it and demand an apology,” Prasad said. Prasad also questioned Kharge’s role as Congress president and questioned whether he had “abandoned all sense of dignity”.
“The position he holds has previously been held by leaders like Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Azad, Sonia Gandhi, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and even Rahul Gandhi. What kind of language does a person holding such a position use? Kharge’s comment is not only insulting but completely rude and disgraceful.” PTI.
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Karji’s RSS statements raise controversy
Not just his remarks at the Kerala rally, Karge’s comments on the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) at an election rally in Assam also angered the BJP.
Citing the Qur’an, Kharj is alleged to have said that if a venomous snake passes in front of someone, even if he is praying, he must abandon prayer and kill that venomous snake. “I would say that breaking the prayer does not matter. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and the BJP are that poisonous snake,” Karji said.
The BJP criticized the Congress over Kharge’s remarks and said it was an attempt to defame “national organisations”.
