Mallikarjun Kharge In Trouble Over 'Modi Ka Baap' Remark, Complaint Lodged In Patna

Patna: A police complaint has been lodged against Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge at the Kotwali police station in Patna over his alleged derogatory reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s father. The written complaint has been filed by Krishna Singh Kallu, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s state working committee.

The controversy stemmed from an event in Patna to commemorate the 139th birth anniversary of Bihar’s first Chief Minister Krishna Singh, popularly known as Sri Babu. A video clip from the event has since surfaced on social media, capturing Kharge losing his cool with an alleged derogatory remark about PM Modi’s father.

According to reports, while Kharge was addressing the audience, a man in the crowd interjected, shouting out loudly, saying “Modi will not go”. Visibly annoyed by the interruption, the Congress president retorted, “Modi ka baap bhi jayega”, meaning even Modi’s father will go. The exchange, which was captured on camera at the event, triggered an immediate political storm across the nation. Reports further claimed that Congress workers allegedly assaulted the man who had interrupted and removed him from the hall, though the circumstances of the alleged assault were not immediately clear.

Call For Scrapping SIR, Return To Ballot Papers

At the same event, Kharge made a series of sharp political demands centred around the electoral process and SIR. Calling opposition to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls a “second war of independence”, he demanded scrapping of the ongoing SIR exercise, reintroduction of ballot papers in all future elections and annulment of Assembly elections held over the past 2 years.

The Congress chief accused the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the BJP of pursuing an ideology that was widening divisions across the country. “As long as RSS ideology is not eliminated, there will be no peace in the country,” he claimed, alleging manipulation of electoral rolls and deletion of names of opposition supporters, and questioning the integrity of the electoral process and the Election Commission.

“Governments stolen through ‘vote chori’ in West Bengal, Haryana, Bihar and Maharashtra must be removed,” Kharge said, urging people to take to the streets, fight for their rights and safeguard the Constitution. He asserted that the SIR must be halted immediately and all assembly polls held in the last two years be annulled, adding, “Besides, elections should be held using ballot papers to ensure transparency and restore public confidence. Democracy must be protected, and every vote must count.”

BJP Opens Front, Top Leadership Demands Apology

The Congress President’s remarks set off fierce exchanges on Sunday, with the BJP and Congress trading barbs. The BJP opened a full front against Kharge, condemning the comment as abandonment of political decorum, while Congress leaders defended his response and accused the ruling party of a history of personal attacks. As part of escalating protests, the BJP announced it will burn an effigy of the Congress president on Monday morning at the Income Tax Circle in Patna.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah accused Kharge of tearing apart all norms of political decency with his comment about the Prime Minister’s late father. He alleged that the Congress had repeatedly used abusive language against the Prime Minister and his family, citing earlier references to his mother, the “merchant of death” jibe and mocking of his humble background as a “chaiwala”. The Union Home Minister blamed Rahul Gandhi’s leadership for increasingly indecorous conduct, alleging that repeated electoral defeats had left the Congress without substantive policies and dependent on personal attacks, and that voters had repeatedly punished the party for such remarks.

BJP president Nitin Nabin termed the remarks evidence of Congress’s “ideological bankruptcy”, saying political opposition must retain dignity and that dragging deceased family members into speeches reflected a lack of decorum. “The language that was once associated with thugs and hooligans is now being used by the Congress President himself,” the BJP said in a post on X, likening the party’s functioning to that of a “mafia gang”. Nitin Nabin asserted that the opposition resorts to personal attacks when it has no issues on development or public welfare, adding that people would respond democratically.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stated that he was shocked and hurt by the remarks, accusing the Congress of letting the political discourse fall to personal insults. He emphasised that Congress leaders had earlier mocked PM Modi’s humble family background and used objectionable language against his mother, adding that opponents were free to question policies but should not violate personal boundaries. He termed it an attack on the dignity of Indian politics, saying that the Congress had become politically, ideologically and morally bankrupt, and the public would respond to an insult to the sentiments of millions.

Union minister JP Nadda took aim at the Congress, saying that the comment deserved the strongest possible condemnation and accused the Congress of venting political frustration, stating, “The Congress must realise that the trust of the people cannot be won through a politics of hatred and humiliation.” Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath called the remarks unforgivable and strongly condemnable, saying the Congress had become synonymous with abusive language, that the comment insulted the sentiments of 145 crore Indians and brought shame to Indian democracy, and demanded strict action and an apology to the entire country.