Uttar Pradesh minister faces Congress ire for remarks against Priyanka Gandhi Vadra

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Minister Dinesh Pratap Singh on Wednesday faced the ire of the Congress over his remarks against Priyanka Gandhi Vadra for contesting from Wayanad, with a party leader blackening his nameplate and writing "çhor" (thief) on the gate of his official bungalow here.

The minister, who was in Congress earlier and lost as BJP candidate from Raebareli against Rahul Gandhi in the recent Lok Sabha election, said in a post on X, "Ultimately the girl could not fight and ran away to a place where she did not have to fight. She has become old." Singh, who is a BJP MLC, did not name anyone but used the hashtag #WayanadLoksabhabyeelection with his post.

The minister's post was seen as an attack on Vadra, who had given the "Ladki hoon lad sakti hoon" slogan during the 2022 assembly elections and was formally named on Tuesday the Congress candidate from Wayanad, a seat vacated by her brother Rahul Gandhi.

Reacting on the minister's post, Congress' Uttar Pradesh unit president Ajay Rai said, "This is Dinesh Singh, a minister in the UP government and a BJP leader who lost the parliamentary elections badly. Look at his language and think about women. When women contest elections, they have to listen to the foul language of hundreds of such 'badmash' (rogue) people." "Such people are ministers in the BJP government that is why the condition of women's safety is bad in the state," he said on X.

Later in the afternoon, party leader Anil Yadav, who holds the post of the state general secretary (organisation), reached the minister's bungalow with a black spray paint can and blackened his nameplate and also wrote "chor" on the gate.

Yadav later told reporters that such comments by anyone against his party leader will not be tolerated.

No police complaint has been lodged in this connection yet.

The UP minister, however, again attacked the members of the Gandhi family, alleging they were only able to win with the support of other parties.

"A political person starts his political career from his home, whereas no one from the Gandhi family could do politics from their home turf. We all know that these fake Gandhi family people have spent their generations in Delhi, but none of them opened their shop of love in Delhi because that shop cannot run in Delhi.

"The country knows that these are escapist people. They left Italy, came to India, left Rae Bareli, went to Rajasthan and once again left Rae Bareli and Amethi and went to Wayanad. They are parasitic people...

"If the votes of other parties are taken out from the election score of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, they are still losers. Everyone knows what is the reason for running away to Wayanad," Singh said on X.