NCP’s Kakade Urges Sharad Pawar To Cut Ties With Congress Amid ‘Gungi Gudiya’ Row
The NCP leader said he has written to Sharad Pawar and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, urging them to act in the matter.
Mumbai: The ‘gungi gudiya’ issue refuses to die down in Maharashtra with the NCP leader and former MP Sanjay Kakade on Wednesday questioning the silence of Sharad Pawar over the controversy. He demanded that the veteran leader should sever ties with the Congress and quit the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance.
“The Congress party’s ideology has become filthy. Why has Sharad Pawar remained silent despite such a vile statement being made about his daughter-in-law? If a Congress leader could make such remarks against a member of his family, Pawar should reconsider his party’s association with the Congress in the MVA alliance,” Kakade said in Pune.
The NCP leader said he has written to Sharad Pawar and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, urging them to act in the matter. He called on Gandhi to either seek Harshwardhan Sapkal’s resignation as the Maharashtra Congress chief or direct him to issue a public apology for referring to Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar as ‘Gungi Gudiya’ on the party’s official social media platform,
Describing the remarks as derogatory and insulting to women, Kakade criticized Sapkal for allegedly defending the remark instead of condemning it. “Such language was unbecoming of Maharashtra’s political and social culture. Political opponents are free to question a leader’s work, decisions and policies, but using derogatory language against a woman leader is unacceptable.” he said.
Kakade also gave the Congress a 24-hour ultimatum to apologise, warning of statewide protests if no action is taken. “We will not allow Congress leaders to move freely on the streets. They will face a ‘tit-for-tat’ response,” he said.
The row erupted after the Maharashtra Congress on Tuesday shared a video on social media in which NCP leader Dhananjay Munde appeared to shield Sunetra Pawar from a journalist’s question on the law-and-order situation in Beed district. The Congress posted the video on its social media handle and stated, “Sunetra Pawar, how many more days will she remain a ‘gungi gudiya?”
Meanwhile, Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe claimed that attempts were being made to score political points over the ‘gungi gudiya’ remarks regarding Sunetra Pawar.
“There was no intention to insult or belittle Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar in the tweet. The tweet referenced a specific term used by (socialist leader) Ram Manohar Lohia regarding (former Prime Minister) Indira Gandhi in a particular political context; it was not a personal attack. However, it is unfortunate that some individuals are attempting to inflame the situation by exploiting this issue for their own political gain,” Londhe stated.
