File photo off Rahul Gandhi and Omar Abdullah.
Credit: PTI File Photo
Srinagar: In a show of solidarity, Congress ally and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah Thursday defended Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after a BJP MP accused Gandhi of being responsible for his injuries during a scuffle outside Parliament building.
"I know Rahul, he would not push anyone much less a member of parliament. It's simply not in his nature to be rude or nasty to anyone,” he posted on X after BJP MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi’s allegations were widely circulated on social media.
Sarangi alleged that Rahul pushed an MP “who fell on me after which I fell down. I was standing near the stairs when Rahul Gandhi came and pushed an MP who then fell on me,” the leader, who was taken to the hospital for first aid added.
The controversy erupted following a heated confrontation between Opposition and NDA MPs on the Parliament premises, reportedly sparked by an insult to BR Ambedkar. The BJP claimed that two of its MPs, Pratap Chandra Sarangi from Balasore (Odisha) and Mukesh Rajput from Farrukhabad (Uttar Pradesh) were injured after allegedly being pushed by Opposition MPs during protests over the Ambedkar issue.
Omar’s support to Rahul comes just days after the former junked allegations about the manipulation of Electronic Voting Machines - raised by the Congress and several opposition parties.
Responding to Omar’s claims, the Congress said that his approach to issues concerning the opposition has changed since he became Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.
Omar, whose party National Conference is part of the INDIA bloc, said that one must be “consistent” in questioning the machines that are used to hold elections across the country.