Shillong witnessed a heated political slugfest as the BJP and Congress locked horns in a fierce war of words. The BJP Mahila Morcha and Yuva Morcha condemned what they called derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother, made by Congress leaders during Rahul Gandhi’s Bihar tour. Party members said the comments were not just an attack on Modi’s family but an insult to all mothers and women of the country.
Tensions spiked as BJP staged protests outside the Congress Bhawan, drawing an immediate counter from Congress, which accused the ruling party of theatrics to deflect attention from the issue of “vote chori.”
Further BJP leaders filed an FIR against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra in Chhattisgarh over her alleged remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The Meghalaya unit of the party also accused Moitra of insulting the Scheduled Caste Matua community and hurting the sentiments of Sanatanis.
What began as a protest spiraled into a full-blown political showdown, with both national parties trading charges and shaming each other in public.
Speaking to media in Shillong, State Yuva Morcha president M. Lyngdoh said, “Today’s protest is mainly for two reasons. One, against Congress leader Muhammad Rizvi who insulted the late mother of the Prime Minister. Two, we have filed a zero FIR against Mahua Moitra for her statement against Amit Shah. We hope police take cognizance and register a case against her. No action has been taken, she is still scot free.”
Congress leader Manuel Badwar hit back, dismissing BJP’s charges. “Rahul Gandhi never did and never will make derogatory remarks,” he said. Calling BJP’s agitation a diversionary ploy, he added, “What the BJP is trying to do is divert attention from vote theft. They feel cornered and are reacting in whatever possible way they can. This is a tactical move to take away the limelight.”
Badwar accused BJP of playing politics of distraction. “They like to divert attention. They play politics in the name of religion, caste, even family. The Gandhi family has taken the brunt of it for long,” he remarked. He further charged the ruling party with shielding unemployment and inequality issues behind manufactured controversies. “The BJP has done nothing except create wealth for a few people. The country is becoming poorer, and Meghalaya is taking the brunt of it,” he said, asserting that Congress “will keep on standing for the poorest of the poor.”
The war of words in Shillong thus became a microcosm of the larger national battle, with BJP projecting itself as the defender of women’s dignity while Congress framed the protests as a smokescreen to camouflage what it terms “democratic subversion.”
