Congress President Rahul Gandhi mocks religious seers given MoS status by Shivraj Singh Chouhan government in Madhya Pradesh
NEW DELHI: Congress president Rahul Gandhi today recalled a Bollywood hit to mock Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and poke fun at a group of 'babas' who had called off a protest after being given a ministerial status by the state government.
Only mama knows where the babas are going, Gandhi said in Hindi on Twitter, taking an unholy dig at Chouhan, who is known as mama -- or uncle -- in the state.
He used the lyrics of a song from the 1988 Hindi film "Qayamat se Qayamat Tak" -- Papa kehtey hai (Dad said) -- to mock the 'babas', the five religious men who had called off their 'Narmada scam yatra' after being accorded the minister of state (MoS) status.
"Baba used to say will do great work, will foil the Narmada scam, but now only 'Mama' (maternal uncle) knows what their final destination is.
'Qayamat se Qayamat tak' (doomsday) in Madhya Pradesh," he tweeted, twisting the lyrics of the song.
He also attached a news item to the post which said the Chouhan government had granted an MoS status to the five seers.
The seers had earlier announced that they would take out a 'Narmada scam yatra' to expose corruption in the river cleanliness drive.
"Kudos to BJP for always finding novel ways to hide their corruption! They've outdone themselves by rewarding religious leaders who were campaigning against corruption in Madhya Pradesh with Minister of State status," the Congress also said on its official Twitter handle.
The party posted a video to underline that the seers had earlier planned out a yatra against corruption.
The Babas, including Computer Baba and Yogendra Mahant, had said they were giving up their plans to expose corruption in Narmada preservation as the government had agreed to set up a panel of seers to look into the issue. They justified the Cabinet berths saying it would allow them to work in close coordination with local officials.
“The move coming months before the assembly polls, raises doubts about their real intent behind joining the government,” Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Arun Yadav said. “The BJP should clarify what is the deal.”
State Congress leaders said the move was aimed at keeping the so-called religious heads in good humour so that their followers continue to support the saffron party. The Narmada is considered a religious icon in the Madhya Pradesh. Leaders cutting across political divide participate in various events centred around the water body.
(With inputs from Amit Agnihotri)