UP Congress president booked for Rafale toy display in Varanasi

Varanasi: Uttar Pradesh Congress President Ajay Rai was booked in his home district Varanasi on Thursday for displaying a toy model of Rafale fighter jet adorned with lemons and chilies, a gesture that has sparked controversy.

Chetganj Station House Officer Dilip Kumar Mishra said an FIR was registered based on a complaint lodged by Pradeep Kumar Gupta. Police sources said Gupta is member of a local Hindu group.

"Based on the complaint, Ajay Rai has been booked under Sections 197(1) (imputations and assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 353(2) (making, publishing or circulating false statements, rumours or alarming news that could incite enmity or hatred between different groups) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita," SHO Mishra said.

The complaint alleges that on May 5, Ajay Rai publicly presented a toy plane to which lemons and chilies were tied and compared it to the Rafale fighter jet, "a symbol of India's pride". It further accused Rai of calling the Rafale jet "useless," thereby "ridiculing the Indian Army and mocking the nation's security system".

Gupta's complaint mentioned that Rai's action was widely publicised by Pakistani media, leading to ridicule of India's defence capabilities. It argued that Rai's actions were not only an attempt to demoralise the Indian Army but also an effort to boost the morale of Pakistan and promote an anti-national environment.

Ajay Rai could not be reached for a comment.

Speaking to reporters at his Varanasi home on Sunday, Rai had questioned the BJP-led Centre for not using the Rafale jets following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack. He further symbolically hung 'nimbu-mirchi' (lemon and chillies) on a toy plane model, labelling it "Rafale".

"When the Rafale jets were being brought to India, the government tied lemon-chillies to them. I am just reminding the government. When will the lemon-chillies be removed and the Rafale jets do their work? The people of the country and the family of those killed in Pahalgam want to know," Rai had said.

The comment kicked up a political storm, with the BJP on Monday calling it an insult to the armed forces.