"No one has right to insult our religion and PM..." Union Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Kharge's 'Ravana' remark

He further said that the people of Gujarat have never accepted Congress and have been rejecting them for the past 27 years.

Union Health Minister and BJP leader Mansukh Mandaviya on Thursday cast his vote for the first phase of Gujarat Assembly elections in Hanol village in the Bhavnagar district. While talking to ANI about the place he said "This is my birthplace. When I come here, I meet with my friends and other people who refer to me as "tu". It is a great feeling."

On being asked about the 'Ravana' remark on PM Modi by the Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Mandaviya said "The people of Gujarat have always condemned such words. No one has the right to insult our religion and our Prime Minister with words like these." He further said that the people of Gujarat have never accepted Congress and have been rejecting them for the past 27 years.

"The people of Gujarat have never accepted them. They are being rejected for the past 27 years, and will again do that for 32 years. The public will again give the mandate to BJP," he added. Mandaviya, before he went to cast his vote, had said that this time BJP will break its own record and will create a new record.

"People of my village (Hanol) have always believed in the politics of development. I see that the trust of the people of Gujarat has increased in BJP. This time we will break our record and will create a new record," said the Union Health Minister. He also said that BJP emphasises democratic values, and urged people to go for voting.

Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit back at Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge for calling him "Ravana" and said that there is a competition among Congress leaders as to who will use the most abusive words for him. Notably, during a poll campaigning for the Party, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge at a rally in the Behrampura area of Ahmedabad described PM Modi as Ravana.

"In all these campaigns, he (Modi) only talks about himself. 'Don't look at anyone else, just look at Modi and vote'... how many times do we have to see your face? How many forms do you have? Do you have 100 heads like Ravan?" Kharge had said. The second phase of the Gujarat Assembly election is on December 5.

Meanwhile, polling for the first phase of the Gujarat Assembly election began today amid tight security arrangements. The polling is taking place in 89 constituencies spread across 19 districts of Kutch, Saurashtra and South Gujarat. The voter turnout was recorded to be over 59 per cent till 5 pm on Thursday.

The state has been a BJP stronghold for a long and the party has set its sights on returning to power for the seventh term. However, it faces a stiff electoral challenge from the Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which named Isudan Gadhvi its chief ministerial candidate. (ANI)

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