BJP Slams Congress Chief After Derogatory Remark Against Indian PM Modi

Congress parliamentarian Madhusudan Mistry made derogatory comments against the prime minister in Modi's home state of Gujarat earlier this month, while more recently he was compared with demon king Ravana.

India's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hit back at Congress Party chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday after he kickstarted a controversy by comparing Prime Minister Narendra Modi with demon king Ravana.

Ravana is the chief antagonist of the Hindu epic Ramayana, who is known for abducting Goddess Sita before being killed by Lord Rama in a battle in what is believed to be modern-day Sri Lanka.

Every year, Indians celebrate the day of his death as the festival of Dussehra, which symbolizes the victory of good over evil. The day is celebrated in India, where effigies of Ravana are burned alongside those of his brother Kumbhkarana and son Meghanada.

Amit Malviya, chief of the BJP's information technology group, posted the video of Kharge's remarks with a sharp reaction.

"Unable to take the heat of Gujarat election, pushed to the fringe, Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge loses control over his words, calls Prime Minister Narendra Modi Ravan. From "Maut ka Saudagar" to "Ravan", Congress continues to insult Gujarat and its son," Malviya wrote on Twitter.

Kharge, who is the first non-Gandhi to head the Congress Party in more than two decades, made the statement during a campaign rally in Gujarat, which is also the prime minister's home state.

"Modi ji is Prime Minister. Forgetting his work, he keeps campaigning in corporation elections, MLA elections, MP elections, everywhere... All the time he's talking about himself - 'You don't have to see anyone else, just look at Modi and vote'. How many times do we see your face? How many forms do you have? Do you have 100 heads like Ravan?" Kharge said during a rally.

With polls to elect a new state assembly in Gujarat scheduled for December 1 and 5, India's main opposition party has intensified its campaign in the state.

However, mocking PM Modi hasn't worked well for Congress in past elections.

In 2002, when then-Congress President Sonia Gandhi called Modi the "merchant of death", the BJP swept to power with 127 seats in the 182-member legislative house.

In the last assembly election held in 2017, it was former Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar who appeared to have helped the BJP to get over the line with victories in 99 constituencies after labeling Modi a "despicable person."

The BJP has ruled Gujarat for the last 27 years and is looking to win a seventh straight term.

Congress, meanwhile, ran a low-key campaign in the state until recently but has got caught in a series of controversies of late.

The results of the Gujarat elections will be out on December 8.