On Thursday, the BJP accused "very abusive language" being used against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his mother, Heeraben Modi, during an election campaign rally in Bihar earlier this week. The rally included posters of opposition leaders Rahul Gandhi of the Congress and Tejashwi Yadav of the RJD.
In a caustic X post, the party accused the Congress-headed INDIA group of hitting an all-time low in politics, saying that the 'Voter Adhikar' yatra by Mr. Gandhi and Mr. Yadav had "shamed the people of Bihar (and) crossed all limits of insult, hatred, and lowliness."
"Tejashwi and Rahul employed such filthy words from their stage. it is not even possible to quote the words," the BJP posted on X. "This is so much of a blunder that even if Rahul Gandhi had apologised by doing sit-ups grasping his ear. for a thousand times. the people of Bihar will never forgive. Very shameful."
A 33-second clip of the Darbhanga district rally — where Congress flags are waved, confetti is hurled, and party workers scream into megaphones — has gone viral on social media. The video has not been verified by NDTV, which contains a stage that is decorated with pictures of Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and Tejashwi Yadav, but none of them are to be seen in the clip.
The row broke out after Congress and RJD workers, led by regional leader Naushad, allegedly waved party flags and hurled insults at the Prime Minister from the podium.
The BJP also charged that the opposition alliance was insulting Biharis by fielding political leaders from southern states, such as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and Telangana's Revanth Reddy, to campaign for the INDIA bloc prior to the elections. The Congress has, however, kept its distance from the video and allegations of using abusive language.
In spite of this, the BJP stood firm. Party leader Shahnawaz Hussain said, "The type of language used against the PM. the types of abuses used. Rahul Gandhi must apologise. The people of Bihar adore PM Modi and won't accept this."
The run-up to the Bihar election has been marred by controversy regarding the 'special intensive revision' (SIR) of the electoral roll. Directed by the Election Commission, the exercise has been attacked by opposition parties for disenfranchising lakhs of voters and aiding the ruling BJP-Janata Dal United to continue in power.
Opposition leaders have charged the BJP and the election authority with conspiring to engage in voter fraud in Karnataka and Maharashtra last year and trying again in Bihar. The BJP-JDU combine replied that the opposition is attempting to safeguard "fake" voters, referring to news of foreign nationals being enrolled as voters.
Challenges to the SIR exercise that has deleted 65 lakh names from the voter roll on grounds of death or shift are ongoing in the Supreme Court.
As part of an effort to counter what the opposition labels "voter fraud," Rahul Gandhi has been conducting a 'Voter Adhikar' rally in Bihar. The campaign began on August 17 and is set to end in Patna on Monday.
Read also| RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat Says Hindu Rashtra is Egalitarian, ‘No Hindu vs Others’
