MUMBAI: Mumbai Congress President Sanjay Nirupam came under severe flack on Saturday when in a controversial remark he likened Karnataka Governor Vajubhai Vala to dogs.
“New record of loyalty has been set in this country in such a way that probably everybody in India would now like to name his dog after Vajubhai Vala as nobody else has been more loyal than him,” Nirupam said while interacting with the media here after the developments in Karnataka assembly where BJP leader B S Yediyurappa had to resign as Karnataka Chief Minister without going in for trust vote.
Nirupam was trying to take potshots at the Karnataka governor for inviting the BJP to form a government even while the party didn’t had numbers.
The BJP was quick to react. “Just an hour back Congress President Rahul Gandhi was crying foul about how BJP has undermined democratic institutions of the country and now one of their own city presidents have shown just how the Congress honors such institutions,” said Maharashtra BJP spokesperson Keshav Upadhye. “Nirupam has shown the true Congress culture,” Upadhye said.
After receiving the flack for his remarks, Nirupam apologized for the remarks in a typical way without reverting on his comment and added that the governor needs to resign for murdering the democracy.
"Vajubhai Vala is a human being. How can I make him a dog. I just said that in the best of the virtues of being loyal he has left behind even the dogs. If he feels offended by the statement I apologize for that. However, his excellency has left no stone unturned in murdering the democracy. Would he mind resigning," read Nirupam's tweet later in the day.
Nirupam’s remarks also changed the tone of the TV debates. While it was in favor of the Congress party, after Yediyurappa’s resignation and leaving the assembly hall without waiting for the national anthem, it went completely against the party due to Nirupam’s overzealous reaction.
Meanwhile, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) president Sharad Pawar too criticized Vala. He said that now Vala’s resignation needs to be sought for his partisan approach in inviting the BJP for government formations even while they lacked requisite numbers for the trust vote.