We must respect electors, not denigrate their wisdom: Kapil Sibal on Rahul Gandhi's 'MP in North' remark

Reacting to party leader Rahul Gandhi's "MP in the 'north-south" remark, Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Wednesday asserted that the "wisdom" of the country's electors must be respected despite the fact where they are located.

Reacting to party leader Rahul Gandhi's "MP in the 'north-south" remark, Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Wednesday asserted that the "wisdom" of the country's electors must be respected despite the fact where they are located. "I am nobody to comment on what he said. He said it and he can explain in what context he said...We must respect electors in the country and not denigrate their wisdom..They know who to vote for and why," Sibal said while speaking to ANI.

Earlier on Tuesday, Gandhi had said in Thiruvananthapuram that Kerala was a 'refreshing experience' for him after 15 years as an MP in the north. "For the first 15 years, I was an MP in the north. I had gotten used to a different type of politics. For me, coming to Kerala was very refreshing as suddenly I found that people are interested in issues and not just superficially but going into detail on issues," the Congress leader had said.

Sibal slammed the responses from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders on Gandhi's comments, saying that it is "laughable" that they are accusing Congress of trying to divide the country. "It is laughable that the BJP is saying that the Congress is trying to divide the country. This is a government that has divided the people since it came to power in 2014." Several BJP leaders, including Union Ministers Prakash Javadekar, Anurag Thakur, and BJP president JP Nadda had hit out at the Wayanad MP and accused him of creating a 'north-south' divide.

Speaking about naming the newly-built Motera Stadium after Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, Sibal opined that it was perhaps "not the most appropriate thing to do". "The Prime Minister might be convinced that he is as significant as Sardar Patel and maybe that is the reason the name has been changed. But I think changing the name of a stadium that was in the memory of Sardar Patel was perhaps not the most appropriate thing to do at this point in time. But if it is for authorities to decide," he said.

On bail granted to 21-year-old climate activist Disha Ravi, who was arrested for her involvement in sharing a 'toolkit' on social media in connection with the ongoing farmers' protest, Sibal said that the order by the Sessions judge to grant her bail was "very timely and thoughtful". "It is a very thoughtful and timely order. Of course, it is only an order granting bail but I think the judge has rightly said that unless there is an incitement for violence by words spoken or by deeds or actions, sedition law should not be misused in this fashion," he said. (ANI)

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)