BJP seeks apology from Germany for Modi 'dictator' comment

"Describing Modi as a dictator is intolerable. Tarnishing the image of a democratically elected Chief Minister by visiting German officials is unacceptable," a BJP release said.

The release, quoting Vijay Jolly, BJP, Joint Convener, Foreign Cell, said the party  would hold a demonstration outside the German mission here on April 12. The delegation of German Parliamentarians, whose visit was supported by 'Missio', a Christian Catholic Bishops Agency, had gone to Gujarat, it said.

The lawmakers had raised an objection to the new anti-conversion law of the state government saying it had made conversions difficult, the release claimed. It termed the act of the delegation as "unfriendly" and said various BJP leaders would take part in the demonstration and submit a protest memorandum to the German ambassador.

The delegation members, who had visited the state to study the status of minorities, reportedly justified the European Union's earlier decision of not granting visa to Modi. "The Chief Minister of Gujarat has a radical tone to his politics and is described as dictatorial. He has a wrong perception of religious freedom," members of Christian Democratic Union (CDU) of the ruling coalition of Germany had reportedly told the media during their visit to Ahmedabad on April 8.

The next day Modi wrote a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding an apology from the delegation.