'Pappu' has become 'Param Pujya', says MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Rahul Gandhi's assembly elections win

With the announcement of results for Madhya Pradesh assembly elections on Wednesday morning, the Rahul Gandhi-led Congress won in three heartland states ruled by the BJP - Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh. 

While referring to Congress' victory in 2018 assembly elections a year after Rahul Gandhi took over the party as its President, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena Chief Raj Thackeray on Wednesday said that Congress president Rahul Gandhi who was referred to as "Pappu" by his opponents has now become "Param Pujya" (most revered).

"Rahul Gandhi was alone in Gujarat, even in Karnataka and now too. Now Pappu has become Param Pujya. Will his leadership be accepted at the national level, you are seeing it," he said.

The MNS chief also took a swipe at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said the party was bound to be defeated because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and party president Amit Shah's behaviour.

"It was bound to happen. The way Amit Shah and Modi ji behaved in the past four years. It is all clear to the people of India now, they failed in all fronts and they have nothing to show, so they are playing Ram Mandir card but people are smart enough," he added.

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Following a nail-biting finale for of the Madhya Pradesh elections vote-count for 230 constituencies of the state, Congress came first winning 114 seats. The BJP came in a close second with 109 seats. The BSP and SP have also won two and one seat respectively. Independents have got four seats.

Securing 99 of the total 119 seats, the Congress emerged as the single-largest party in Rajasthan by a comfortable margin, falling just one seat short of gaining a majority. BJP, on the other hand, won 73 seats in the state.

In a landslide victory, Congress managed to bag 68 out of the 90 seats reducing BJP to 15 seats gaining a huge majority in the Chhattisgarh Assembly, ousting the Raman Singh-led BJP. 

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