Aiyar ‘neech’ jibe may help BJP win
After Rahul rebuke, Congress suspends Mani Shankar for remarks against the PM
Senior Congress leader and a known Gandhi loyalist, Mr Mani Shankar Aiyar, ran out of luck on Thursday as the party suspended him for calling Prime Minister, Mr Narendra Modi a “neech aadmi” (vile man) who does “dirty politics”. He has also been served a show cause notice.
Mr Aiyar’s remark not only rattled the Congress but also gave BJP a stick to beat its rival before the crucial Gujarat polls.
Mr Modi who seemed to be fighting his toughest battle in Gujarat indicated that Aiyar’s remark would now provide BJP a major electoral advantage. Speaking in Surat, Mr Modi maintained that while he had nothing to say on a “wise” Congress leader calling him ‘neech’, he hinted that this could just be the winning card.
“They have their language and we have our work. People will answer them through the ballot box,” Mr Modi said.
The development came on a day when a vituperative campaign for the first phase of the crucial Gujarat Assembly polls that saw emotive issues of religion and caste competing with that of development as the main rivals, BJP and Congress, launched noholds-barred attacks on each other ended on Thursday evening.
Sensing that this could just be the ‘chaiwala’ moment for the BJP, an apparently rattled Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi admonished Mr Aiyar through Twitter and virtually instructed him to tender an apology.
However, it just could be a wee bit late for the Congress to rein in Mr Aiyar as yet again before a crucial poll, he handed over a major advantage to the BJP.
His description of Mr Modi as a ‘chaiwala’ played a crucial role in making the Prime Minister closer to the “poor and ordinary” people in the country.
Senior Congress leader and a known Gandhi loyalist, Mani Shankar Aiyar, ran out of luck on Thursday as the party suspended him for calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi a neech aadmi (vile man) who does “dirty politics”. He has also been served a show cause notice.
“Show them even a chaiwala can become a Prime Minister in this country,” BJP had screamed from the roof top.
Charged by Mr Aiyar’s description of him as a neech the Prime Minister himself moved in to identify himself with the lower caste, poor and voters of Gujarat.
While describing Mr Aiyar’s remark as a “Mughal mentality”, Mr Modi openly played the OBC card. “Mani Shankar Aiyar said I belong to neech caste, I am neech, this is an insult to Gujarat,” he said in the OBC dominated Gujarat.
He tore Congress to shreds and asked, “Have I done any neech work in my public life?”
The BJP which apparently was struggling after decades in Gujarat polls seemed to have bounced back, thanks to Mr Aiyar’s “insult”. The BJP is now not expected to let the voters forget Mr Aiyar’s remarks till the elections are over or even after.