New Delhi, Mar 24 (PTI) Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday denied BJP president JP Nadda’s allegation that Rahul Gandhi compared the OBC community to thieves and accused the ruling party of indulging in “caste politics”.
Amid a political tussle between the BJP and the Congress following Gandhi’s conviction in a defamation case on the “Modi surname”, Nadda alleged that “lies, personal slurs and negative politics were integral to his politics”.
“By comparing the OBC community to thieves, Rahul Gandhi has shown a pathetic and casteist attitude. However, his latest disappointment is not surprising. Over the past several years, he has always reduced the level of political discourse,” said Nadda .
In response, Kharge tweeted in Hindi, “Modi Govt cannot escape from JPC! Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi and Mehul Choksi absconded with PNB and public money. OBCs didn’t do that, then how come they were insulted? “SBI/LIC suffered loss by your best friend!” He slammed the government.
“‘Ek toh chori mein sahyog phir jatigat rajneeti ka prayog’(First helping to steal and then using caste politics),” Kharge said, adding that it was “shameful”.
In a 2019 criminal defamation case, a Surat court sentenced Gandhi to two years in prison for saying, “Why do all thieves have the surname Modi?”
Convicting Gandhi, 52, under sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), a court headed by Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Verma granted him bail and stayed the sentence for 30 days to allow him to appeal to the Supreme Court. .
If the appeals court suspends the conviction and two-year jail term, Gandhi could escape immediate disqualification as a member of parliament. PTI ASK NSD NSD
