BJP slams Opposition for 'allowing' abuses against PM’s mother

A viral video from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ in Bihar has triggered a political storm with the BJP accusing the opposition bloc of allowing abuses against PM Narendra Modi’s late mother from its campaign platform.The footage, purportedly from Darbhanga where Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav began Wednesday’s motorcycle ride to Muzaffarpur, shows unidentified voices from a dais using a Hindi slur for the PM’s mother. Though the BJP did not post the clip on its official handle, it quickly spread online, prompting outrage within the ruling party.

Top BJP leaders slammed the incident as a “new low in politics”. Uttarakhand CM Pushkar Singh Dhami tweeted that such language was “not only indecent but an attack on motherhood and women’s dignity”. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary called it “RJD's hooliganism” and accused the Congress of tolerating rowdy behaviour “in its blind quest for power”.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said there was little to distinguish between Rahul Gandhi, Mani Shankar Aiyar and Sanjay Raut, claiming that leaders of the INDIA bloc seemed to be competing with each other in making offensive remarks.

He described Rahul as the Congress’s “new Mani Shankar Aiyar” and alleged that the culture of abuse within the party extended beyond targeting the Prime Minister. Patra further accused the Congress of being habitually disrespectful, pointing to Gandhi’s criticism of constitutional institutions and recalling Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit’s controversial comments against former Army Chief Bipin Rawat in 2017.

The BJP’s Bihar unit on Thursday also lodged a police complaint at the Kotwali station and staged protests in Darbhanga, burning effigies of Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav. “We will not take this insult lying down,” said district party chief Aditya Narayan Jha ‘Manna’, demanding a probe and strict action.

In a statement, the BJP alleged that Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav were directly responsible for “crossing all limits of insult, hate and tastelessness”. It added that the choice of such language reflected the desperation of the opposition, insisting Bihar’s voters “will not forgive them even if they apologise a thousand times”.

The Congress and RJD, however, hit back. State Congress leader in Bihar Asit Nath Tiwari said it was the BJP that had normalised abusive politics, arguing that widespread resentment against the NDA was fuelling public anger at rallies. “We always urge people to remain civil, but the BJP thrives on such language, not us,” he said.

RJD’s Mrityunjay Tiwari questioned whether the remarks came from genuine opposition supporters, calling for an inquiry while insisting that “civility has always been violated by the BJP, never by the INDIA bloc”.

The episode comes as the yatra, with roadside stages and large crowds, seeks to mobilise support for the INDIA bloc before the Assembly elections later this year. Instead, the viral video has handed the BJP fresh ammunition, sharpening the confrontation between the two camps in Bihar.