Rajnath, Adityanath slam DMK's A Raja for remarks against TN CM; MP responds to EC notice

Top BJP leaders--Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday slammed DMK's A Raja for his alleged derogatory remarks against Tamil Nadu CM K Palaniswami, as the Lok Sabha MP insisted he has been 'falsely accused' of making such comments.

The leaders' criticism came a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's veiled attack on Raja, where he had dubbed the former union telecom minister as an 'outdated 2G missile' of the Congress and DMK and slammed him for insulting Palaniswami's mother and targeting Tamil Nadu women.

Rajnath and Adityanath held election rallies in support of party candidates in Coimbatore, Udhagamandalam and Thalli, with the Defence Minister insisting that Raja's remarks amounted to insulting ''mothers and sisters'' all over the country.

Raja, in his 'interim explanation' to an Election Commission notice on the matter, said he had not spoken anything 'obscene' or which would lower the dignity of women and motherhood.

Also his speech was not violative of the Model Code of Conduct or any other law, he argued.

Coming out in support of Palaniswami, leader of BJP ally AIADMK, Singh lashed out at Raja, saying he has not just insulted the women of the state, but ''mothers and sisters'' all over the country.

''..whatever he spoke about Chief Minister Palaniswami is shameful and I condemn it. In a healthy democracy, dignified language should be used and whatever the senior DMK leader had said, I don't want to repeat because it is shameful,'' he said.

''He has defamed not just Tamil Nadu, but insulted our mothers and sisters of the country by making such remarks and people will give a strong reply to this in the ensuing polls,'' Singh added.

Raja had stoked a controversy after he made alleged derogatory remarks against Palaniswami and his mother during the campaign for the April 6 Assembly polls, with the EC issuing a notice to him on the matter, even as the police booked him under the IPC and Representation of People Act.

Adityanath, addressing an election meeting at Coimbatore, hit out at both the Congress and DMK, alleging that they have failed to safeguard women.

Referring to some alleged derogatory remarks made by some political party leaders, including Raja, Adityanath said this has proved that there would be no protection to women if these parties were voted to power.

Meanwhile, Raja told the EC that his speech was not violative of the Model Code of Conduct or any other law.

A study of his entire speech would show that the allegations made were a result of having taken his words out of context and it was also 'blown out of proportion' to secure 'political mileage.' Raja claimed he used a 'simile' to trace the political evolution of his party chief M K Stalin and Palaniswami and using such comparison was accepted in Tamil oratory.

He compared the two leaders to 'babies' for easy understanding of the common people to refute Palaniswami's allegations that Stalin never worked hard to rise to his present position.

''Hence, if the full text is considered by the committee, I am hopeful that it will wipe out the insult and consequent injury inflicted on me,'' he said.

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