The Election Commission of India has taken serious note of remarks made by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “terrorist”, issuing a stern notice amid a widening political row.
The poll body said it had taken serious note of the comment and formally issued a notice to Kharge over the statement.
The development follows remarks made by the Congress chief at a press conference on Tuesday, which drew sharp reactions from the BJP and prompted scrutiny from the Election Commission.
Kharge has to further respond to this notice within the next 24 hours.
During the press conference, Kharge, while questioning the AIADMK’s alliance with the BJP for the Tamil Nadu polls, used the word “terrorist” in reference to the Prime Minister.
"How these AIADMK people, who themselves put the photo of Annadurai, how can they join Modi? He is a terrorist. His party won't believe in equality and justice. These people are joining with them; it means they are weakening democracy, they are weakening the philosophy of Annadurai, Kamaraj, Periyar, Kaliagnar, Baba Saheb Ambedkar," he said.
When asked to explain the remark, Kharge clarified his position.
"He (PM Modi) is terrorising people and political parties. I never said he is a terrorist...What I mean, I want to clarify, is that Modi always threatens. The institutions like ED, I-T and CBI are in his hands. He wants to take delimitation also into his hands. Therefore I said, in that context, he is terrorising people and political parties. I never said he is a terrorist," he said.
The BJP reacted strongly, with party spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari calling the Congress an “Urban Naxal Party”.
"The Congress is an "Urban Naxal" party; that is why Kharge employs abusive language against the Prime Minister. This is not the first time this has happened. The repeated use of venomous rhetoric, including death threats, makes one thing abundantly clear: the Congress party's "remote control" lies in the hands of anti-national forces," he said.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal also criticised the remarks and demanded an apology.
"I feel ashamed that the Congress and the DMK have stooped so low that they are insulting the Prime Minister who is democratically elected by the people of India, by calling him a terrorist. Rahul Gandhi and MK Stalin must apologise for this downright insult to the Prime Minister as well as the people of India who have voted him in," he posted on X.
"The Congress and DMK have humiliated 140 crore Indians, including our 8 crore Tamil brothers and sisters, with this statement. This unholy alliance is effectively calling Indians terrorists by targeting the Prime Minister. Such personal attacks against the PM won't reverse their electoral fate that has already been sealed by the anger of the people who have suffered their misrule," he added.
Kharge’s comments came two days after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in an address to the nation, accused the Congress and other Opposition parties of committing “foeticide” for defeating a bill on women’s reservation in Parliament and state assemblies.
The controversy has unfolded in the backdrop of ongoing electoral activity, with political rhetoric intensifying across party lines.
