Srinagar: BJP leader Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore on Thursday said AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge’s terrorist remark against Narendra Modi was an attack on crores of Indians who elected the prime minister.
Addressing a press conference here, Rathore, Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports, Government of Rajasthan, said the Congress president had indulged in “verbal violence” against Prime Minister Modi, and should apologise.
“There is physical violence, and then there is verbal violence. Such a senior politician indulging in such behaviour against a constitutional post is electoral frustration, and that too against a constitutional post that has been elected by crores of Indians. You can see where thinking, wisdom and culture have gone,” he said.
The BJP leader said the people of the country today question whether “grabbing power” is so important that people forget about democratic and cultural values and indulge in such attacks.
“This is an attack on crores of Indians who elected Modi as the PM of the country. This must be condemned,” Rathore said.
Welcoming the Supreme Court’s questioning of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s action during the ED search at the office of political-consultancy firm I-PAC, Rathore said it is a victory of truth.
He congratulated the Supreme Court for unmasking what was going on behind the veils in West Bengal.
“When even judges are not safe in Bengal, then who can be? So, it definitely is the victory of the truth,” he added.
To a question about violence in Bengal, Rathore expressed hope that the percentage will increase this time as security forces have been deployed there in strength.
“I do not have the first-hand info, but Bengal has been governed by the politics of fear. There was violence even after the last elections. But security forces have been sent there this time to keep the violence low.
Voting will also take place in two phases. The Election Commission has directed the Centre to send security forces there to control the violence, and we hope polling percentage will increase this time,” he said.
On a question about restoration of statehood to Jammu and Kashmir, the BJP leader said, “This is a very important region of the country, but there is a process for everything.
“As we move forward with the process, statehood will come,” he said.
Earlier, Rathore lashed out at the Congress and other opposition parties for creating hurdles in the passage of the Constitutional Amendment Bill in the Parliament.
He said women have waited for a long time for a reservation and for being a part of policy and decision-making, “but Congress and a few other opposition parties created hurdles in its implementation”.
The amendment presented an opportunity for all parties to take credit for passing this unanimously, like the Women’s Reservation bill was passed unanimously in 2023, he said.
He said Modi did not want to take anything from anyone by implementing the women’s reservation in the current strength of the Lok Sabha.
“It was better to have expansion and then give representation to women,” Rathore said.
