Modi must not stoop to such level: Sunanda on his remarks

Berating Narendra Modi for his remarks against her, Sunanda Pushkar, wife of Union Minister Shashi Tharoor, today asked him to show respect to women and not "stoop" to such level.

Sunanda said she was not expecting an apology from the Gujarat Chief Minister who had over the last 10 years chosen not to express regret for the 2002 post-Godhra riots.

"I have nothing to say to Narendra Modi. A man who has not apologised for killings of innocent Gujarati in his state, how would I expect apology from him," she said when asked if she expects Modi to apologise for his remarks that she was Tharoor's Rs 50 crore girlfriend.

"How can he stoop to something like that. A state which has given Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel, then you have this guy. In a country of such great women like Sonia Gandhi, Meira Kumar you have to have some respect for women," she said.

"Wah kya girlfriend hai. Apne kabhi dekha hai 50 crore ka girlfriend?" (What a girlfriend?. Have you ever seen a 50-crore girlfriend), Modi said at an election rally in Shimla on Monday, in an apparent attack on Sunanda.

Tharoor had taken on Modi tweeting, "My wife is worth a lot more than your imaginary 50 crores. She is priceless. But you need2be able2love some1 2understand that."

On Modi's comment that malnourishment among Gujarati women was because they were fashion conscious, she said "Modi even doesn't know his people, has he gone to those places."

Speaking about the IPL controversy, she said I have given my explanation to the Enforcement Directorate.

"I would like to ask the BJP or anybody who thinks I have this imaginary money, how did it suddenly become Rs 50 crore, earlier the figure was Rs 70 crore. Have they taken Rs 20 crore? BJP needs to figure things out. Show me the money," she said.

With activist-turned-politician Arvind Kejriwal attacking relatives of the politicians for their alleged involvement in corruption, she said "you should not target family, why would you target individuals who are not in politics? Even Priyanka Gandhi Vadra is not in politics."

Asked about her husband's tweets following Modi's remark, she said, "Its tough being in limelight. I told Shashi I was not happy about some of his earlier tweets. This time I am happy, I think the Gujarat CM, I don't even feel like mentioning his name, should understand you can't keep on attacking people."

On the issue of a youth misbehaving with her at Thiruvananthapuram airport yesterday, she said it was not a Congress worker who did it. "As the young man apologised I had decided not to press any charge," she said.

"I didn't slap him, I just hit his arm while he was groping," she said.