New Delhi:

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Monday responded to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s criticism of his use of the word “Shakti’ – referring to the divine feminine energy – while describing the opposition’s efforts to defeat the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in the April/May Lok Sabha elections.

The prime minister and the BJP accused Mr Gandhi and the opposition, including the Congress-led Bloc India, of wanting to destroy “Shakti‘ and expanded the comment to “…deny the existence of Lord Ram”. “I accept their challenge. I will sacrifice my life,” the Prime Minister said in Jagtial in Telangana.

Mr Gandhi later retorted that the prime minister “always tries to change the meaning of my words by twisting them in some way” and said he spoke of “power (or ‘Shakti‘) It covers India’s institutions, media, industry and the entire constitutional structure”.

“…He (PM Modi) knows that I have spoken a profound truth. The force I mentioned, the force we are fighting against…the mask of this force is Modilucky. This power has taken hold of various agencies…the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Enforcement Directorate, the Income Tax Department, the Election Commission, the media and the entire constitutional structure of India,” he claimed.

Modi doesn’t like my words and he always tries to twist them in some way to change their meaning because he knows that I speak deep truth.

The power I mentioned, the power we are fighting, is the mask of power that is Modi.

That’s the kind of power he has…

—Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) March 18, 2024

“I recognize the power…Modilucky Also recognized this power. This is not religious power. This is the power of corruption and lies.That’s why whenever I raise my voice against him, Modilucky Disturbed and angry,” Mr Gandhi thundered at the “Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra” event in Mumbai.

Read | ‘Misogynistic’: Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Shakti’ remarks spark controversy at rallies

Mr Gandhi was seen referring to opposition claims that the BJP uses central agencies such as the Central Bureau of Investigation, Education Directorate and Income Tax Department to target and intimidate rivals, especially ahead of elections.

Mr Gandhi also spoke of a “senior (Maharashtra political) leader” who quit the Congress party.

“Crying… he told my mother (Congress matriarch Sonia Gandhi), ‘Sonialucky, I am ashamed to say that I have no strength to fight against this nation and this power. I don’t want to go to jail’. “

Many believe the “senior leader” is former Maharashtra chief minister Ashok Chavan, who switched the Congress party to the Bharatiya Janata Party last month and in 48 Within hours he was nominated to the Federal House of Representatives. However, Mr Chavan issued a statement this morning rejecting Mr Gandhi’s remarks referring to him.

Read | Ashok Chavan on Rahul’s ‘crying senior leader’s resignation’ jab

Mr Chavan faces three pending cases; two of them related to the 2010 Adarsh ​​Cooperative Housing Society scam that led to his resignation as chief minister.

In his response on

The Congress leader also referred to earlier “crony capitalism” attacks on the prime minister and the BJP, claiming Mr Modi “auctioned the country’s property to enhance this power” while poor Indians Yet live in poverty and suffer ongoing costs—an existential crisis.

The prime minister was not the only BJP figure to lash out at Gandhi. BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla accused the Congress MP of expressing “misogynistic” views.

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