<p>New Delhi: A high-level BJP delegation, led by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, met the Election Commission of India on Wednesday to demand action against Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for calling Prime Minister Narendra <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/india/kharge-accuses-modi-of-terrorising-people-political-parties-bjp-hits-back-3975936">Modi a “terrorist”</a> during an election campaign speech in Tamil Nadu.</p><p>The delegation, which included Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, and BJP national general secretary Arun Singh, urged the poll panel to initiate the “strictest action” against the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.</p>.BJP doubles down on Mallikarjun Kharge's 'terrorist' remark on PM Modi, files complaint with poll body.<p>It demanded that Kharge and the Congress party issue a public apology to the nation. The BJP also submitted a memorandum urging that Kharge be charged under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and that campaign restrictions be imposed on Kharge.</p><p>“Today, we appeared before the full commission to bring to its notice that no less a person than the president of the Congress and the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha has spoken in such condemnable words, calling the Prime Minister a terrorist,” Sitharaman told reporters after the meeting.</p><p>“We have demanded that the Election Commission take the matter in all seriousness. We requested the poll panel to act firmly and sternly,” she added.</p><p>Rijiju, who termed the episode a “disgusting act” and “an issue for the entire nation”, said the Election Commission gave the delegation a patient hearing and assured it would take “appropriate action” in the matter. “We have demanded the strictest action. We have also demanded that Kharge and the Congress be directed to apologise to the country,” he said.</p>.'Terrorist' tag for PM Modi': Election Commission issues notice to Mallikarjun Kharge, but only after a faux pas.<p>The controversy arose after Kharge, addressing a press conference in Chennai on Tuesday, the final day of campaigning for Tamil Nadu assembly polls, criticised the AIADMK's decision to ally with the BJP. In the course of his remarks, he described Modi as a “terrorist who does not believe in equality”. Kharge soon clarified, saying he had intended to convey that the Prime Minister was “terrorising” political parties and citizens by "misusing government machinery and central agencies." </p><p>The BJP rejected the clarification, with Sitharaman pointing to the government’s stated zero-tolerance policy on terrorism and accusing the Congress of using the election campaign to make incendiary remarks towards Modi.</p>
<p>New Delhi: A high-level BJP delegation, led by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, met the Election Commission of India on Wednesday to demand action against Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for calling Prime Minister Narendra <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/india/kharge-accuses-modi-of-terrorising-people-political-parties-bjp-hits-back-3975936">Modi a “terrorist”</a> during an election campaign speech in Tamil Nadu.</p><p>The delegation, which included Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, and BJP national general secretary Arun Singh, urged the poll panel to initiate the “strictest action” against the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.</p>.BJP doubles down on Mallikarjun Kharge's 'terrorist' remark on PM Modi, files complaint with poll body.<p>It demanded that Kharge and the Congress party issue a public apology to the nation. The BJP also submitted a memorandum urging that Kharge be charged under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and that campaign restrictions be imposed on Kharge.</p><p>“Today, we appeared before the full commission to bring to its notice that no less a person than the president of the Congress and the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha has spoken in such condemnable words, calling the Prime Minister a terrorist,” Sitharaman told reporters after the meeting.</p><p>“We have demanded that the Election Commission take the matter in all seriousness. We requested the poll panel to act firmly and sternly,” she added.</p><p>Rijiju, who termed the episode a “disgusting act” and “an issue for the entire nation”, said the Election Commission gave the delegation a patient hearing and assured it would take “appropriate action” in the matter. “We have demanded the strictest action. We have also demanded that Kharge and the Congress be directed to apologise to the country,” he said.</p>.'Terrorist' tag for PM Modi': Election Commission issues notice to Mallikarjun Kharge, but only after a faux pas.<p>The controversy arose after Kharge, addressing a press conference in Chennai on Tuesday, the final day of campaigning for Tamil Nadu assembly polls, criticised the AIADMK's decision to ally with the BJP. In the course of his remarks, he described Modi as a “terrorist who does not believe in equality”. Kharge soon clarified, saying he had intended to convey that the Prime Minister was “terrorising” political parties and citizens by "misusing government machinery and central agencies." </p><p>The BJP rejected the clarification, with Sitharaman pointing to the government’s stated zero-tolerance policy on terrorism and accusing the Congress of using the election campaign to make incendiary remarks towards Modi.</p>
