Facing a mounting attack from the BJP, Congress president Rahul Gandhi Monday again rebuked his party’s overseas unit chief Sam Pitroda, saying he should be “ashamed” for his “totally wrong” remarks on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and should seek apology from the country. His remarks came at his first poll rally in Punjab in an apparent damage control exercise after an uproar over Pitroda’s “hua to hua” response to a query on the riots. He had earlier tweeted his disapproval and the party had distanced himself from Pitroda’s remarks.

“What Sam Pitroda said about 1984 was totally wrong and he should seek an apology from the country. “I am saying this publicly and I also told the same to him over phone. Pitroda ji, what you had said was completely wrong and you should be ashamed of yourself. You should seek a public apology,” Gandhi said towards the end of his speech here.

The BJP stepped up offensive against the Congress over Pitroda’s remarks as the 1984 riots is an emotive issue in Punjab which is going to poll on May 19.
During campaigning in Haryana’s Rohtak district and in Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district, PM Narendra Modi on Friday had said the comments reflected the “character and arrogance” of the opposition party. On Sunday in Punjab’s Amritsar, BJP chief Amit Shah had asked Gandhi whether the matter has ended with Pitroda tendering an apology for “justifying” the “Sikh genocide. Gandhi was addressing a rally in favour of Congress candidate and former bureaucrat Amar Singh who is pitted from Fatehgarh Sahib (reserve) against SAD nominee D S Guru.

Getting personal in an attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati on Monday asked how a man, who had abandoned his “innocent wife” for “political selfishness”, be expected to respect women.

Ms. Mayawati’s strong words came in the context of the rape of a Dalit woman in Alwar, Rajasthan. Mr. Modi had referred to the incident at a rally in Uttar Pradesh and asked Ms. Mayawati why she was still supporting the Congress government in Rajasthan where the incident took place.

“What will he understand the honour of other’s sisters and daughters,” she said. She accused Mr. Modi of playing politics over the rape case.

Ms. Mayawati added that she had come to know that married women in the BJP were apprehensive of letting their husbands go close to Modi, as they feared he might separate them like how he ‘abandoned’ his wife. She appealed women to “not vote for such a person.”

“ Mamata Didi – Democracy has become a casualty in Bengal. Opposition workers are murdered, candidates are attacked, polling booths are captured and Opposition leaders are not entitled to organise rallies,” he said, adding that “Behan Mayawati” was “unfit for public live”.

“She is firm on becoming a Prime Minister. Her governance, ethics and discourse stoops to an all-time low. Her personal attack today on the Prime Minister exposes her as unfit for public life,” he tweeted.

The Capital’s political grapevine is abuzz with possible scenarios after the election results on May 23. Some like TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu are already active. The Congress camp believes that if the party crosses 125 and the BJPgets less than 200 seats, the BJP cannot stake claim to form government. The Congress, as the largest party in the anti-BJP coalition, will take the lead in spearheading a mahagathbandhan government with Rahul Gandhi as potential prime minister. If the Congress gets less than 100 seats, then regional party leaders will stake their claim to head an anti-BJP coalition. However, if the BJP wins more than 230 seats, it will be on the threshold of government formation. With the numbers from the three major NDA allies, the JD(U), Shiv Sena and Akali Dal (the AIADMK may not count for much) and potential backers such as Jagan Mohan Reddy’s YSR Congress, Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal, Chandrashekar Rao’s Telangana Rashtra Samithi and some Independents, it could reach the half-way mark of 272 fairly comfortably.

But what happens if the BJP gets somewhere between 200 and 220 seats? Some believe that the BJP could still hope to get support from other political parties if it agreed to replace Narendra Modi and settle for a more pragmatic and conciliatory leader, such as Nitin Gadkari, Rajnath Singh or Devendra Fadnavis. The BJP brains trust dismisses such talk as nonsensical kite-flying. Whatever the strength of the BJP, it will be entirely due to Modi and no replacement for him is possible. In any case, Modi and Amit Shah have ensured that the majority of the BJP candidates owe loyalty to them. The BJP is convinced that the NDA will cross the half-way mark on its own. In this election, Modi has completely overshadowed his party. Supporters seldom mention the BJP, they simply say they are voting for Modi.

At his Ghazipur rally, prime minister Narendra Modi blamed the Congress government in Rajasthan for shielding the Alwar gang-rapists because they did not want the news to come out during the polls. In sharp language, Modi also attacked what he called the “award wapsi gang” and said the light of their protest candles have long since gone out.

A BJP youth leader in West Bengal’s Howrah, Priyanka Sharma, was detained and remanded in 14 days’ police custody after a complaint was lodged with police over a meme she had posted, where TMC chief Mamata Banerjee’s face was morphed onto a photo of Priyanka Chopra’s from the Met Gala.

At the end of his Robertsganj rally, prime minister Narendra Modi made the customary request for votes, this time for Apna Dal (Sonelal) candidate. He then said, “You know me, I was a chaiwala and had to live off washing cups and plates from which others had eaten. But now, as your chowkidar, I am asking for votes for the same symbol which has been a part of my life for so long,” he said. The analogy drew appreciative applause from the crowd and laughs from the likes of Yogi Adityanath on the dais.

At his Robertsganj rally, prime minister Narendra Modi mocked Sam Pitroda’s hua so hua remark on the 1984 Sikh riots, for the second straight day running. Using the Hindi line as a refrain as he described the reported faults of the Congress governments that have been in power earlier, Modi said people will soon tell people like these that they should disappear. “People will say hawa ho jao, hawa ho jao,” Modi said. Modi also criticised Congress chief Rahul Gandhi over his claims that he hugs in reply to vitriol.

Aam Aadmi Party’s West Delhi candidate, Balbir Singh Jakhar’s son Uday Jakhar said on Saturday that his father joined politics about three months ago and had had nothing to do with the AAP’s original movement. He further alleged that Balbir had paid Arvind Kejriwal Rs six crore for a ticket and said he had “credible evidence” that cash was directly handed over to the Delhi chief minister. Uday also said that when he had asked his father for financial assistance to complete his education, his father had refused. “I don’t know how my parents will react or if I will be allowed back into my house after this,” he said.

As many as 770 companies of Central forces will be deployed in West Bengal in the sixth phase of elections on Sunday. The state has seen violence and bloody clashes in every one of the five phases of the election so far.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra took up the issue of the TIME article on prime minister Narendra Modi, where he was called “divider-in-chief” by writer Aatish Taseer, at his press conference on Saturday. He said, “The man who called Modi divider-in-chief is a Pakistani man, he is a Pakistani citizen. You all know what Pakistan is like. They hate Narendra Modi because he did the two surgical strikes on them. What else can be left to say?” said Patra. Taseer is the son of journalist Tavleen Singh. His father is late Punjab governor, Salman Taseer, who is Pakistani.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra slammed Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu over his comment on Friday evening, when he called prime minister Narendra Modi a ‘kale angrez‘ (black English). “Kale hain toh kya hua dilwale hain,” he said, adding that the comment made by Sidhu, “upon Rahul Gandhi’s instructions” prove that he is a racist. Patra also quoted more lines from the song to express that Modi had won the hearts of Indians.

Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday once again tore into the SP-BSP alliance by likening SP chief Akhilesh Yadav to Aurangzeb, who had imprisoned his father, emperor Shahjahan. Adityanath alleged that Akhilesh has “cornered” his father, SP patriarch Mulayam Singh Yadav, and tied up with Mulayam’s enemy, BSP.

Not one to ever make politically correct statements, Navjot Singh Sidhu delivered on Saturday yet another criticism of prime minister Narendra Modi, this time using a trope which can assuredly be called misogynist. Dubbing Modi “liar-in-chief and divider-in-chief”, Sidhu then went on to compare the prime minister to a wife who rather than making bread, prefers to clink her bangles together so that the whole neighbourhood can hear and surmise that she is working hard.

Leaders of the Uttar Pradesh gathbandhan Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati tore into both the BJP and the Congress, a day before polling in key constituencies of the state. Both leaders accused the BJP and Congress of trying to cut into the SP-BSP alliance’s vote share, and colluding to defeat the gathbandhan.

With the Congress party facing flak for Sam Pitroda’s “jo hua so hua” remark on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, Congress president Rahul Gandhi has finally intervened. Rahul has said that Pitroda’s comment was ‘completely out of line’. Reports also said that Rahul has asked his political guru to issue an apology. Pitroda’s comment was also condemned by Congress veteran and Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh.

Earlier, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav alleged that ‘red cards’ are being issued only to the SP and BSP, adding that BJP is conspiring to scare people against voting. The SP chief also predicted that the BJP and Congress would win zero number of seats in Sunday’s phase six polling while the BJP would win just one seat in the seventh and final phase.

Meanwhile, the opposition’s mega meeting to strategise on government formation may not take place on May 21 as several regional leaders now wish to wait for the election results on May 23. According to reports, PM hopeful and West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee reportedly told Andhra counterpart Chandrababu Naidu that the meeting can be held after the results and that current focus should be on keeping a close watch on EVMs and strongrooms.

Banerjee and Naidu held a closed-door discussion yesterday on future plans for the Mahagathbandhan. The meeting between Banerjee and Naidu took place for over 15 minutes, according to a well-placed source in the Trinamool Congress. On whether Banerjee will be attending the proposed meeting of the opposition parties, the TMC leader said that the date of the meeting was yet not decided.

“It’s not decided that the meeting will be held on May 21… it seems that it might be deferred by a couple of days and take place after May 23. Didi May be taking part in it,” he said.

Naidu and Banerjee are believed to have also talked about the voter-verified paper audit trail (VVPAT) issue and the probable voting percentage in the so far held five phases of polling in the ongoing Lok Sabha Elections, the TMC leader said.

Earlier, Naidu joined Banerjee at a campaign meeting of TMC at Kharagpur on Thursday where he spoke high about her and urged people to vote for Trinamool to oust the BJP from the power.

Later, Naidu participated and delivered a speech for TMC North Kollkata Lok Sabha consituency candidate Sudip Bandyopadhyay at Sithi in the city.

Banerjee, who has floated the idea of federal front of regional parties, has been playing an important role for unity of anti-BJP bloc.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegation – that former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had used the Navy’s aircraft carrier INS Viraat as a personal taxi for going on a family vacation – has been strongly rebutted by the Congress. It is PM Modi, the Congress said, who uses Air Force jets as his “own taxi”, paying “as low as Rs. 744” for trips during the election. The Prime Minister, the party said, is “scared’ of his “own sins” and is pointing fingers at others.

Citing a media report at a press conference today, Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said, “You have made Indian Air Force jets your own taxi! You have paid as low as Rs. 744 for using IAF jets for election trips!” Mr Surjewala said.

The media report, based on an RTI, said the BJP paid Rs. 1.4 crore to the IAF for 240 “non-official domestic trips” made by PM Modi since the start of his tenure as prime minister till January 2019. “In some cases, the amount paid seemed to be quite low. For example, the BJP paid Rs. 744 for a trip by PM Modi on January 15, 2019,” the report said.

At a rally in Delhi yesterday, PM Modi had said “Rajiv Gandhi and his family” had used the aircraft carrier INS Viraat to go on a vacation.

Even his in-laws were on board, he said, and that “Navy personnel were put on service of Rajiv Gandhi and his family while they were vacationing at the island”. INS Viraat, he said, “was also stationed at the island for 10 days during that time”.

Union minister Arun Jaitley on Friday launched a blistering attack on Congress over Sam Pitroda’s remarks on the anti-Sikh riots of 1984, saying it was reflective of a “lack of remorse”. The finance minister also dared Congress chief Rahul Gandhi to sack “his guru” for the statement.

Pitroda had kicked up a storm when asked about the 1984 riots in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi’s assassination, saying “hua toh hua”. As the BJP latched onto his statement in the middle of a slugfest over Rajiv Gandhi’s legacy, Pitroda sought to clarify his comment.

Truth is being distorted, lies are being amplified through social media and targeted People are systematically being intimidated. However, truth will always prevail and lies will be exposed. It is just a matter of time. Have patience,” he tweeted.

In a series of tweets, Jaitley slammed the grand old party and said that it is a matter of disgrace that the Congress has “no remorse” over the 1984 massacre. “Will the Congress President oust his ‘Guru’, who rubbishes the genocide of India’s most patriotic community in 1984?” he wrote.

BJP chief Amit Shah too lambasted Pitroda on Twitter. “Agony of the entire Sikh community. Suffering of all those Sikh families killed by Congress leaders in 1984. Attack on Delhi’s secular ethos. All summed up in these three words by Sam Pitroda – Hua To Hua. India will never forgive #MurdererCongress for its sins.” 

Union minister Prakash Javadekar said Pitroda’s comments were “shocking” and nobody could have expected it.

“Genocide was a gruesome thing that happened to India. At that time, (then prime minister) Rajiv Gandhi justified it by saying that when big tree fails, earth tremors,” Javadekar said. “The science says exactly the opposite that when earth tremors, big tree falls. This is what science is.”

The BJP leader accused the Congress of toying with public sentiments. “Pitroda was Rajiv’s colleague and Rahul’s guru. If the guru is like this, how will the ‘chela’ (disciple) be? This is what is Congress doing… completely insensitive of public feelings.”

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday dared West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee to arrest him for chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’, a day after three people were taken into police custody in Ghatal Lok Sabha seat for allegedly mouthing the slogan as her convoy passed by.
A video showing Banerjee fuming at some villagers in West Midnapore district for chanting ‘Jai Shri Ram’ along a highway on Saturday afternoon has gone viral on social media.

Addressing a rally here, the prime minister also slammed CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury for his “derogatory” remarks against Ramayana and Mahabharata.
“It has become a fashion for communists to use derogatory language against Hindu religion,” he said.
Yechury recently branded religious epics Ramayana and Mahabharata as specimens of Hindu violence.
The Ramayana and Mahabharata are “filled with instances of violence,” the CPI(M) leader had said.

Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today declared that she has not returned Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s calls to discuss Cyclone Fani, as she “does not want to share dais with expiry-PM”.  Earlier today, PM Modi had accused Ms Banerjee of “playing politics” over cyclone relief, triggering a political storm over the superstorm that left a trail of devastation across Odisha and parts of Bengal over the weekend.

At a rally in Bengal’s Tamluk today, PM Modi said he had tried to dial the Chief Minister before the cyclone hit as he felt “worried” about the people of Bengal.

“I tried to talk to Mamata Didi before the cyclone hit, but such was her arrogance that she refused to talk to me,” said the Prime Minister, who held an aerial survey of the affected areas in Odisha and met its chief minister, Naveen Patnaik this morning.

He underscored the point in a Hindi tweet later. “I waited, expecting her to call me back. But she did not. Still, I called her again.  I was worried about the people of Bengal, and wanted to speak to Mamata Didi. But Didi did not speak to me the second time either,” it read.

Speaking at a rally from Bengal’s Bishnupur, Mamata Banerjee said she could not take the call as she was in Kharagpur, a town near Kolkata, to monitor the ground situation, while the Prime Minister was out campaigning.

But to clarify her stance, she added, “I don’t want to share dais with expiry-PM as elections are on” – “expiry PM” being the term she coined to underscore her claim that the Prime Minister’s term in office has expired and he won’t come back in power.

Later, at a rally in Jhargram, she said PM Modi was supposed to address a rally in the neighbourhood earlier today.

“Instead, he lands at Kalaikunda and wants to hold a meeting on cyclone damage. But why should we attend? He is coming for campaigning and he wants to hold an official meeting, and then say that he had called but the state did not respond. Please be informed that during election, I will not share any platform with him. I do not consider him prime minister now. When the new prime minister comes, we will speak with that person,” she added.

The controversy was triggered by media reports that Ms Banerjee was upset that the Prime Minister had called Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi and not her to get feedback on the state’s preparedness ahead of the cyclone.

The Election Commission (EC) Friday cleared Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah in four complaints of alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), of which at least one decision was not unanimous.

The disagreement in the poll panel was on Shah’s speech in Nagpur on April 9 when he likened Wayanad, the second seat from where Congress president Rahul Gandhi is contesting, to Pakistan. The Commission’s decision favouring Shah, was taken by a 2-1 majority, The Indian Express has learnt.

(And this Rahul baba, for the sake of his alliance, has gone to such a seat in Kerala where when a procession is taken out, you cannot make out whether it is India or a Pakistan procession. You cannot make out, to such a seat he has gone).”

Shah said this in an apparent reference to a large number of Indian Union Muslim League flags (green in colour) seen during the procession when Gandhi filed his nomination papers from Wayanad on April 4.

“The matter has been examined in detail in accordance with the extant advisories, provisions of the Model Code of Conduct and after examination of complete transcript of speech of six pages sent by DEO (District Electoral Officer) Nagpur, Commission is of the view that in this matter no such violation of MCC or ECI’s instructions is made out,” states the EC’s reply to Congress leader Randeep Surjewala on the party’s complaint regarding Shah’s Nagpur speech.

With the EC’s clean chit in this case, there are now at least three decisions pertaining to complaints of alleged MCC violations by Modi and Shah that had one Election Commissioner registering his dissent.