Deputy Chief Minister Reacts to PM Modi's 45-Hour Meditation Retreat

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar refrained from commenting on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 45-hour meditation in Kanyakumari, citing it as a private affair. This follows Modi's hectic election campaign. The Congress party claims Modi is violating the model code of conduct by meditating during the silence period before polls.

Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday refused to comment on Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertaking a 45-hour long meditation in Tamil Nadu's Kanyakumari, saying it was the PM's private affair and why should anyone interfere into it.

Responding to a question, the state Congress chief said: ''It is his private thing -- God, bhakti (devotion) -- why should we interfere? Why should we interfere in his prayers and meditation?'' Following the culmination of the hectic Lok Sabha election campaign in which he presided and addressed over a multitude of political events such as roadshows and rallies, Modi will be meditating in an ambience of quietude, where probably only the sound of breaking waves could be heard, till June 1.

While the PM chose Kedarnath cave to reflect and meditate following the end of the campaign in 2019 Lok Sabha polls, now he has chosen a spiritually significant place on the southernmost tip of the mainland of the country.

The Congress party had alleged on Wednesday that Modi was trying to ''circumvent'' the silence period restrictions, ahead of the June 1 last phase Lok Sabha polls, with his meditation trip and urged the Election Commission to ensure it is not aired by the media as it violates the model code of conduct.