Mumbai: Shiv Sena on Thursday defended Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after a video of him in a nightclub in Nepal surfaced. Sena questioned that can’t political leaders go for private functions and participate in parties in a five-star hotel. In an editorial in Sena mouthpiece Saamana, the party slammed the Centre saying Gandhi was not responsible for the riot-like situation in Jodhpur and skirmishes with security forces in Kashmir, but prime minister Narendra Modi had more responsibility.
Gandhi, who visited Kathmandu to attend a journalist friend’s wedding, was attacked by the BJP for being away from the country when Congress-ruled Rajasthan was ‘burning’ and during a crisis within the Congress party.
Defending its alliance partner in Maharashtra, the Sena mouthpiece said, “Can’t other political leaders make a private visit? And can’t they participate in a party in a five-star hotel? The BJP asked why Rahul Gandhi was not concerned when violence erupted in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, where the Congress party is in power.”
The editorial said that when the violence erupted in Jodhpur, PM Modi was on an official Europe tour, where he is taking an initiative to resolve the Ukraine-Russia ‘riot’, but he has not spoken about the issues in the country.
“On Eid, riots erupted in parts of Kashmir valley and security forces were also attacked. Surprisingly, the BJP does not think that these situations were serious. The riot in Kashmir did not break out due to Modi, similarly, the Jodhpur clashes did not erupt due to Rahul Gandhi. However, prime minister Modi has more responsibility towards these issues,” it said.
Maharashtra BJP spokesperson said that it does not respond to criticism made in the Sena mouthpiece.
The editorial asked if the Modi government was serious about the issues in the country. “The Congress party will decide on whether Rahul Gandhi was serious about politics or not, but how serious is the Modi government about several issues in the country,” the editorial said.
It said, “The BJP does not want to discuss issues, including coal shortage, power deficit, unemployment, fair price for farmers, inflation, and Chinese troops’ incursion into Indian territory. They are stuck on Rahul Gandhi’s Nepal visit. They can politicise issues over riots, hijab and loudspeakers, but they will not be resolved… The country is being pushed into the darkness, but instead of discussing real issues, they are discussing Rahul Gandhi’s visit to a nightclub. Is this the new India they spoke about?”
