"Mr. Rama is the slaughterer of Ravan but does not offend him. In Rajdharma and politics there is a difference,” says author Devdutt Pattanaik in his Hindi tweet (translated as above). It is an interesting take on the epic battle that is being fought by Twitterati after Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked Rajiv Gandhi as “Bhrashtachari No, 1” with reference to the corruption alleged in the Bofors deal.
As the former PM, who was killed by a LTTE suicide bomber in a political assassination, was dragged into this bitter 2019 battle for power by the current PM, Mr Modi faced a torrent of criticism online. Having carefully cultivated a very warm and human image in his “no politics” interview with Akshay Kumar, Mr Modi seems to have lost a bit of traction in the hot debate that followed his reference to Rajiv Gandhi.
The point is Rahul Gandhi has been shouting himself hoarse with chants of “Chor” and “Chowkidar chor hai” in the entire campaign over alleged Rafale revelations. Such an emphasis on Rafale deal was bound to bring Bofors back into the public domain regardless of what the courts had to say as there were characters like Ottavio Quattrocchi involved in the messy business.
Rahul, however, says while “BJP is the voice of an organisation, Congress is the voice of a nation.” He adds even more colourfully that the “Congress are the Pandavas and the BJP are the Kauravas who seek only power while the Congress party seeks the truth.” The Mahabharat reference seems apt as the current elections are quite like the do-or-die battle of Kurukshetra.
Rahul Gandhi @RahulGandhi
Modi Ji, The battle is over. Your Karma awaits you. Projecting your inner beliefs about yourself onto my father won't protect you. All my love and a huge hug. Rahul
P. Chidambaram @PChidambaram_IN
‘De mortuis nihil nisi bonum’. Of the dead, speaking nothing but the good. Has the PM heard of this ancient wisdom? Does any religion allow anyone to speak ill of the dead? The PM’s remarks on former PM Rajiv Gandhi show the extent of his desperation and fear of defeat.
Chowkidar Arun Jaitley @arunjaitley
Why is Rahul Gandhi so disturbed if integrity issues of the Rajiv Gandhi Government are raised? Why did Ottavio Quattrocchi get kickbacks in Bofors? Who was the 'Q' connection? No reply has come.
Anshul Saxena @AskAnshul
You can Question: 1. Savarkar 2. Atal Bihari 3. M Parrikar 4. Make conspiracy theory on Justice Loya's death. 5. Compare Bhagat Singh to Burhan Wani. But if you question Rajiv Gandhi on Bofors, Shah Bano case, Bhopal tragedy, 1984 riots etc then you become a blot on Democracy.
Raj Thackeray @RajThackeray
Hatred, endless lying and absolutely no qualms in transgressing the decorum of public life are the 3 characteristics that mark the term of Narendra Modi. This stands intensified with his latest statements against the late Rajiv Gandhi and the nation will definitely not pardon it.
Mamata Banerjee @MamataOfficial
Sorry for my delayed response on this. I was campaigning. The comments made by ‘Expiry PM’ ModiJi against fmr PM Rajiv GandhiJi are very unfortunate. RajivJi dedicated himself & laid down his life for the motherland. I condemn the language used & the audacity of such a statement.
Robert Vadra @irobertvadra
Verbally attacking Rajiv Gandhi ji shows moral degradation.This “gutter” politics demands strict condemnation. Using humiliating words 4 Rajivji shows lack of basic civility. I took baseless accusations on me bravely, but my heart bleeds at deplorable statements made against Rajivji
Anand Ranganathan @ARanganathan72
Rajiv Gandhi was more corrupt than Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi but less corrupt than Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
Akhilesh Yadav @yadavakhilesh
She was referring to the barbaric Muslim Invaders who came and misruled India, support anti nationals.
Aunindyo Chakravarty @AunindyoC
Rajiv Gandhi was exonerated by the Delhi High Court in the Bofors Case in February 2004 BEFORE UPA came to power. If PM Modi believes he was Bhrashtachari No.1, he should also explain why the Vajpayee govt couldn't build a case against him between 1998 to 2004?
Sudheendra Kulkarni @SudheenKulkarni
Has India seen a PM who is so full of himself, and so free of any political morality? #RajivGandhi ended his life as Martyr-PM No 2, not as “Bhrashtachari No1” (His mother was Martyr-PM No 1) Delhi HC cleared RG of bribery charges in #Bofors in Feb 2004
Booby prize
Unsubstantiated spoilers for the rest of Game of Thrones season 8 who leaked on Reddit and Twitter without citing any sources. A few plot points may be in line with GoT Season 8 episode 4 “The Last of the Starks”. But they had posted their leaks before the episode was aired.
The leakers may either have gained inside access at HBO or made guesses based on what they saw in episode 4, which itself had reportedly leaked ahead of time. Why spoil the fun for the dedicated followers who wait for the show?
