BJP complains to EC about Congress tweet on Karnataka’s ‘sovereignty’
A tweet by the Congress quoted Sonia Gandhi as saying that the party would not allow anyone to threaten Karnataka’s reputation, sovereignty or integrity.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday filed a complaint with the Election Commission of India over a tweet by the Congress on a speech by party leader Sonia Gandhi on May 6, PTI reported.
The tweet quoted Gandhi as saying that Congress “not allow anyone to pose a threat to Karnataka’s reputation, sovereignty or integrity”. The former Congress president was quoted as having made the remarks during a poll rally at Hubballi.
However, unidentified sources from the Congress said that someone from the party’s social media team misinterpreted Gandhi’s speech, and that she never used the word sovereignty, according to The Hindu.
CPP Chairperson Smt. Sonia Gandhi ji sends a strong message to 6.5 crore Kannadigas:
— Congress (@INCIndia) May 6, 2023
"The Congress will not allow anyone to pose a threat to Karnataka's reputation, sovereignty or integrity." pic.twitter.com/W6HjKYWjLa
On Monday, a delegation of the BJP, headed by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav, submitted a memorandum to the Election Commission, demanding immediate and firm action against Gandhi. It also sought the derecognition of the Congress, reported PTI.
It said that the tweet by the Congress was a “well-considered evil design to provoke the staunch nationalists, peace-loving, progressive and globally recognised people of Karnataka,” according to NDTV.
“The intent apparently is to disturb the equanimity, harmony and peace that obtains in Karnataka just to garner the votes and support of some select communities or groups, whose sole purpose and intent is to disrupt the very being of the Indian state,” it said.
The Hindutva party also accused the Congress of supporting secessionist organisations such as the banned Popular Front of India and the “tukde tukde gang”.
The BJP uses the phrase “tukde tukde gang” to label its Opposition and its critics as a group that wants to divide the country. However, in January 2020, the Union home ministry said in response to a Right to Information application that it had no information about such a gang in India.
“Karnataka is a very important member state in the Union of India and any call to protect the sovereignty of a member state of the Union of India amounts to a call for secession and is fraught with perilous and pernicious consequences,” the saffron party said.
On Sunday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, at a rally in Mysuru, also referred to the Congress’ tweet and alleged that the “disease” of the “tukde-tukde gang” had reached the party’s top level, according to NDTV.
