The political landscape in Bihar has once again been engulfed in controversy as "gaali politics" takes center stage. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has levelled fresh accusations against the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD)-Congress alliance, claiming that slogans abusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's late mother, Heeraben Modi, were raised during a rally led by RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav.
This comes weeks after the Prime Minister accused the opposition alliance of insulting his mother, escalating tensions ahead of the high-stakes Bihar Assembly elections.
The Bihar unit of the BJP shared a video on X, showcasing Tejashwi Yadav addressing a crowd from an RJD stage during his ongoing 'Bihar Adhikar Yatra,' a campaign aimed at galvanising public support before the polls. In the video, a man can be heard hurling abusive remarks targeting the Prime Minister and his late mother while Tejashwi speaks. The BJP seized the opportunity to condemn the RJD, alleging that Tejashwi encouraged such behaviour.
"Tejashwi again facilitated the verbal abuse of Modi ji's mother at his rally. The more abusive slogans RJD workers raised, the more Tejashwi encouraged them. RJD-Congress has one programme -- abuse mothers and sisters. Their frustration has reached its peak. Bihar will not forget those abusing a mother. Bihar's mothers and sisters will respond to all abuses," the BJP stated in a strongly worded post on X.
The RJD, Bihar's main opposition party, has vehemently denied these allegations, accusing the BJP of circulating a doctored video to tarnish its image ahead of the elections. Dr Mukesh Roushan, an RJD MLA from Mahua, Bihar, clarified that Tejashwi was speaking in his constituency, and the full speech is available in an unedited Facebook video he shared. "No RJD worker or anyone else used any abusive word for the Prime Minister. In the video that the BJP has shared, Tejashwi Yadav can't be heard speaking. They have doctored the video to defame (RJD) as part of a conspiracy," Dr. Roushan asserted in a social media post.
This is not the first instance of such accusations fuelling the political rivalry in Bihar. Earlier, the BJP criticised the RJD-Congress alliance after a group of youngsters used abusive language targeting the Prime Minister from an opposition stage in Darbhanga. The incident sparked a broader controversy, with Prime Minister Modi addressing the issue directly. He framed the abuses as an attack not only on his mother but on the dignity of countless mothers and sisters across India.
"Princes born in royal families won't understand the suffering of an underprivileged mother and her son's struggles. These people have been born with a golden and silver spoon. They believe power in Bihar belongs to their families. But you have blessed an underprivileged mother's son and made him pradhan sevak," Modi said, taking a pointed jab at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and RJD chief Tejashwi Yadav, both of whom hail from prominent political dynasties.
Also Read: Tejaswi Yadav condemns remarks on PM Modi's late mother
The Prime Minister further emphasised the cultural reverence for mothers in India, stating, "I want to tell those who abused my mother in front of the people of Bihar -- Modi might forgive you once, but the land of Bihar and India has never tolerated insult to a mother."
In response, leaders from both the Congress and RJD have distanced themselves from the incidents, clarifying that neither Rahul Gandhi nor Tejashwi Yadav were present on stage when the alleged abusive remarks were made. They accused the BJP of amplifying the issue to gain political mileage and divert attention from substantive electoral issues.
As the Bihar Assembly elections approach, the exchange of accusations and counter-accusations is likely to intensify, with both sides leveraging such controversies to sway public sentiment. The focus on "gaali politics" underscores the deeply personal and emotive nature of the campaign, where allegations of disrespect and defamation are becoming as significant as policy debates.
Also Read: Patna HC orders Congress to remove AI video on PM Modi’s mother
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