Bharatiya Janata Party leader Shahnawaz Hussain on Monday condemned the derogatory remarks made by Congress leader Raja Pateria and said that the people of the country would never forgive him for his "deplorable" statement.
"Raja Pateria's statement is deplorable. The way Congress has been targeting PM Modi is totally unacceptable. Earlier, their party president Mallikarjun Kharge compared the Prime Minister with 'Ravana' and now they are talking about his killing," Shahnawaz Hussain said.
He said that Congress is scared of PM Modi's growing popularity and said, "Narendra Modi lives in the hearts of 130 crore people of the country, the kind of language he (Raja Pateria) has spoken, people will never forgive Congress even after they apologise for it.".
Raja Pateriya purportedly made the controversial remarks on Sunday at the meeting of Mandalam Sector presidents organized by the District Congress Committee at Powai Rest House, which senior party leaders including District Congress in-charge Manoj Trivedi and several party workers attended.
Pateria, the former Madhya Pradesh minister could be heard saying that "PM Modi will "end elections, divide people on the basis of religion and Dalits are facing the biggest threat under his regime". "You should be ready to carry out 'Modi ki hatya' if you want to save the Constitution...hatya (kill) in the sense of defeating him," Pateriya is heard saying.
Hussain further said that Pateia's allegation that there has been no development for the Backward Class of society is false as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has always worked to provide them with a respectable status.
"PM Modi himself comes from a Backward Class. The country is upset with Congress because of the language they use for PM Modi.
Former Madhya Pradesh minister and Congress leader Raja Pateria, stoked a controversy after his purported comments that people should be prepared to carry out Prime Minister Modi's "hatya" (murder), if the Constitution is to be saved.
The Congress is facing a huge backlash, in the middle of Rahul Gandhi's Bharat Jodo Yatra and Pateria on Monday offered a clarification stating that his comments were wrongly interpreted and that he meant defeating Modi electorally.
"A video has surfaced on yesterday's card distribution of the Mandalam sector in Powai, in which it is alleged that I had said I will kill Modi. I am a follower of Gandhi and a follower of Gandhi cannot talk of the murder of anybody. The video is a misinterpretation," Pateria said.
"What I meant to say was it is necessary to defeat him to save this country's Constitution. It is necessary to defeat Modi to protect minorities, Dalits, and tribals and to remove unemployment," Pateria said.
( With inputs from ANI )
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