Digvijaya faces BJP fire over remarks on alleged meeting between Indian officials, Taliban

BHOPAL: Congress Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh faced the BJP fire on Wednesday over his tweet about an alleged meeting between Indian officials and Taliban leaders with Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan saying he has "Talibani mentality".

Slamming the Congress veteran, BJP General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, speaking separately, claimed that "contacts" of the former CM are under the scanner.

Sharing news reports, quoting a Qatar official, about a meeting between India government officials and Taliban leaders, Singh, in a tweet on Wednesday, said, "This is a very serious issue. The Government of India should make an immediate statement on this subject. Will BJP IT Cell take cognisance of this and put this into the category of sedition?" 

Asked about the tweet, Vijayvargiya told reporters at the State BJP office here, "Right now, an investigation against Digvijaya Singh is underway to find out with whom he has been in contact."

However, Vijayvargiya did not elaborate on the nature of investigation against Singh and the agency which is conducting it.

Reacting to the Congress leader's tweet, Chouhan told reporters, "His (Digvijaya Singh's) mentality is Talibani."

Earlier this month, the Madhya Pradesh BJP had demanded a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) against Singh after the Congress leader, in a clubhouse chat, was purportedly heard saying that his party "would certainly have a re-look at the decision to revoke Article 370" (which provided special status to in Jammu and Kashmir).

Asked about the meeting of opposition leaders at the house of NCP president Sharad Pawar in Delhi, Vijayvargiya said there is "panic" among them because of the "towering" personality of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"There is no one in the opposition who can even reach the knee height of Narendra Modi," the BJP leader said, seeking to downplay the meeting.