In Bengaluru, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra lambasts Modi over 'mangalsutra' remarks

INDIAN politics touched a new low this week ever since prime minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on the opposition Indian National Congress in Banswara in the north-western state of Rajasthan on April 21, accusing it of giving away people's hard-earned money and valuables to "infiltrators" and "those who have more children".

He even remarked that even women's mangalsutras (a sacred necklace worn by married Hindu women) would not be spared.

Soon afterwards, the Congress lashed out at the PM over his remarks.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, a top leader of the party, on Wednesday (24) hit back at Modi over his remarks about the Grand Old Party robbing people of their wealth to give to "infiltrators", questioning whether such a thing has happened during its long stay in power. She also said that on the contrary, her mother's mangalsutra was sacrificed for the nation while her grandmother had donated her jewellery during the 1962 war with China.

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Gandhi Vadra's mother Sonia Gandhi, a former president of the Congress, had lost her husband Rajiv Gandhi, a former prime minister, in a terror attack during an election campaign in 1991. Her grandmother Indira Gandhi was also a former prime minister of the country.

Speaking at a rally in Bengaluru, India's IT hub which will go to polling on Friday (26), Gandhi Vadra asked the audience what they hear these days after turning on the television -- not plans for their welfare or development but "crazy talks".

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"He (Modi) says the Congress wants to take away your gold, your mangalsutra. The country has been independent for 70 years. The Congress ruled for 55 years. Has anyone robbed you of your gold or your mangalsutra? When the war was on, Indira Gandhi gave her gold to the country. My mother's mangalsutra was sacrificed for this country," the 51-year-old said.

"The prime minister says they will cross 400 seats and change the constitution... sometimes he says he is being abused, or talks about religion. You are among the most qualified cities in the world... do you deserve this?" Gandhi Vadra asked the audience.

Modi's remark that the Congress is plotting to redistribute the country's wealth in favour of "infiltrators" triggered a massive political row and the opposition party also moved the Election Commission seeking action against the PM. It also accused Modi in its complaint saying he targeted a particular religious community during his speech.

At the rally in Rajasthan, Modi had said the Congress's manifesto promises that if they come to power, "everyone's property will be surveyed, it will calculate gold belonging to mothers and sisters and then redistribute it".

They "won't even spare your mangalsutra," he had added.

Later, the prime minister doubled down on his comments, saying he had "revealed some truths" which left the opposition party "scared".

Gandhi Vadra also asked whether Modi understood the importance of 'mangalsutra'.

"If Modi ji had understood the importance of 'mangalsutra', he would not have said such things. When demonetisation happened, he took away the savings of women. During the farmers' protest, 600 farmers lost their lives, Did Modi-ji think about the 'mangalsutra' of those widows?" she said, raking up the sudden demonetisation move that the Modi government had announced in November 2016 that allegedly had caused severe economic hardships to many common people.

Other senior Congress leaders also criticised Modi over his remark.

Former finance minister P Chidambaram said the PM's remarks showed the ruling BJP's "pathological fear of defeat". Another former minister Jairam Ramesh said the prime minister of a country cannot use such language. Taking a dig at Modi who is often revered as "Vishwa Guru" (global master) by his supporters, Ramesh said the language that the former has used in the last few days suggest that he is not a "Vishwa Guru" but a "Vish Guru" (poison master).