A case has been registered against Charan Das Mahant, the Chhattisgarh Congress' Leader of Opposition, over his 'objectionable' remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a public rally.
The FIR was registered under Section 506 (for criminal intimidation) at Kotwali police station in Rajnandgaon city following directions by the District Election Officer against the senior Congress leader on Friday, police said.
Charan Das Mahant, who is one of the star campaigners of the party, sparked controversy at a public rally in Rajnandgaon on Tuesday when he stated that they needed someone who could hold a stick and confront Modi.
During his speech in the local dialect, Mahant urged the public to ensure the former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel's success for their future well-being.
Mahant called for support for Baghel's victory in the Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha seat, hailing him as a champion of women and farmers.
"We need a protector who can stand up against Narendra Modi, and your MP (referring to Baghel) is that person. We want someone who can hold a stick and confront Narendra Modi," he said.
These remarks stirred controversy, drawing a swift response from the ruling BJP.
BJP MP and national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi criticised the Congress after Mahant's controversial remark against Modi and accused the Congress of "losing its mental balance as the people's love and support for Modi continue to grow."
"It is expected that after being opposed by the people and the ever-increasing support and affection towards PM Modi, Opposition leaders, mainly from the Congress, seem to have lost their mental balance. The Chhattisgarh LoP has once again used derogatory language for PM Modi, which has been a habit of Congress," BJP's national spokesperson, Sudhanshu Trivedi, said on Thursday.
"Such language is saddening in democracy... I want to ask, 'Ye Mohabbat Ki Dukaan Se Kon Kon Se Farmaan Hai?'. Congress claims to hold exclusive copyright and be from the tradition of Gandhi, but did Gandhi used to have a stick for this reason? And this is not just a slip of the tongue but a statement made deliberately and this is all happening from the 2014 elections," he added.
Elections in the 11 parliamentary constituencies of Chhattisgarh will take place in three phases on April 19, 26 and May 7.
The counting of votes will be done on June 4.
The BJP, which has a stronghold in Chhattisgarh, won 9 seats in the 2019 Lok Sabha, while the Indian National Congress was limited to only 2 seats.
In the 2014 election, the BJP won 10 seats, while the INC only managed to win one seat.
