War of words between Congress and BJP over Rahul's visit to Vajpayee's memorial

Rahul Gandhi on Monday paid rich tributes to BJP-RSS icon A B Vajpayee at his memorial here, triggering a war of words between Congress and BJP with the former expressing hope that it may end up in reminding Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the late leader’s 'raj dharma' advice after the 2002 Gujarat riots.

However, the BJP dismissed Rahul visiting 'Saidav Atal', the memorial of the former Prime Minister, as an exercise for the "shutterbugs" and "chattering elites" as well as part of an image make-over effort. It sought to bring to fore the strained relationship Gandhi family had with former Prime Minister PV Narasimha Rao and asked why he did not bother to visit the memorial when he passed through Hyderabad as part of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

Rahul’s choice of adding Vajpayee’s memorial to his itinerary, which included visits to the memorials of former Prime Ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Charan Singh, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, came even as AICC Coordinator in the Congress president's office Gaurav Pandhi deleted his controversial tweet describing Vajpayee as a "British informer" and one who instigated mobs in Nellie massacre and Babri demolition.

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Congress dismissed Pandhi's statement with the remark "a lot is being made out about somebody’s tweet…which has been deleted” while acknowledging the contribution of Vajpayee as one who contributed to the building of the country. It said by visiting the memorial, Rahul was paying homage to each and every individual who had built the country and Vajpayee was one among them.

“Quite frankly, Vajpayee was the Prime Minister who told the then Gujarat Chief Minister, who is presently the Prime Minister, in 2002 that he should follow raj dharma, which was to follow the Constitution,” Congress Social Media and Digital Platforms Chairperson Supriya Shrinate told a press conference in which General Secretary (Communications) Jairam Ramesh was also present.

“It is a pity, Modi never learnt that lesson and he has kept the Constitution at bay. We only hope and pray that today after seeing Rahul-ji at Atal-ji’s samadhi, Modi will realise that his utmost duty is to safeguard the Constitution and stop the violence in his name that’s happening and I think, that is the message Rahul Gandhi was trying to deliver," she said.

She said the Bharat Jodo Yatra is about a "confluence of all kinds of ideologies and when Vajpayee told Modi to follow the 'Raj Dharma', he was safeguarding the Constitution and Rahul’s presence at Atal-ji’s samadhi is a mark of that respect".

The BJP was not impressed with the argument and sought apology and clarification from Congress for Pandhi's tweet. BJP IT Cell head Amit Malaviya tweeted, "Rahul Gandhi visiting samadhis of former PMs is for the shutterbugs, chattering elites and part of his makeover exercise, the nth perhaps. If he was sincere about it, he should have visited the samadhi of Narasimha Rao in Hyderabad too. He didn’t, even though it was on his way."

BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia said Vajpayee was an epitome of honesty and a messenger of peace, while Rahul was involved in "defaming" India and "spreading hatred".

"Atal-ji is an epitome of honesty, dedication to the nation and a messenger of peace. Rahul Gandhi at 'Sadaiv Atal' is corruption kneeling before honesty. The question is whether he has walked the path taught by him. From defaming India, supporting 'tukde tukde' gang Rahul Gandhi only spreads hatred," Bhatia tweeted.

BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala tweeted, "Gaurav Pandhi has deleted his tweet but that is not enough. Congress must clarify its stand and apologise. Must sack serial offender Pandhi. Or else we will be forced to believe that 'Shabd Pandhi ke, soch Rahul Gandhi ki'...(Pandhi’s words, Rahul Gandhi’s thinking)."