Congress defends Rahul's meeting with priest, claims BJP rattled by 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'

Jumping to Rahul Gandhi's defense over his meeting with controversial priest George Ponnaiah in Kanyakumari, Congress on Saturday claimed that BJP was blowing the issue out of proportion. AICC general secretary communications Jairam Ramesh stated that the saffron party is spreading misinformation and accused it of turning desperate ever since the successful launch of the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'. The meeting bears no relation with the party's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', he added. 

Congress defends Rahul Gandhi's meeting with controversial priest

Taking to Twitter, Jairam Ramesh stated, "An atrocious tweet from the BJP's hate factory is doing the rounds. It bears no relation whatsoever to what is recorded in the audio. This is typical BJP mischief that has become more desperate after the successful launch of Bharat Jodo Yatra which is evoking such a huge response".

In yet another tweet, the Congress leader said, "People who were responsible for the killing of Mahatma Gandhi and the murders of people like Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare, MM Kalburgi, and Gauri Lankesh are raising questions! What a morbid joke! Such attempts to damage the spirit of Bharat Jodo Yatra will fail miserably"

Rahul Gandhi meets controversial pastor George Ponnaiah 

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi sparked a massive row on Saturday after he met controversial catholic priest George Ponnaiah in Tamil Nadu's Kanyakumari during the 150-day-long 'Bharat Jodo Yatra'. A video clip of Rahul Gandhi has surfaced where he can be seen interacting with the controversial Tamil Nadu pastor and asking if Jesus Christ is a form of God.

Ponnaiah has a history of delivering provocative statements which have landed him in trouble in the past. In July 2021, Ponnaiah was arrested from Kallikudi, Madurai for allegedly making a 'hate speech' against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, a DMK Minister, and many others.

As the video of Rahul Gandhi with the controversial catholic priest went viral, BJP slammed the Congress leader and accused him of spreading anti-Hindu agenda, terming his padayatra as 'Nafrat Jodo Abhiyan' and 'Bharat Todo Yatra'. BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla attacked Rahul Gandhi and questioned whether George Ponnaiah is Congress' poster boy of 'Bharat Jodo'. He remarked that the Congress is doing 'Bharat Jodo yatra' with icons of 'Bharat Todo'.

This comes in the backdrop of the grand old party's 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' as Gandhi is undertaking the 3,570-km Padyatra' to connect with people across the country while seeking to strengthen the Congress party, which has suffered successive electoral defeats in the last few years. 

(Image:  Republic/Twitter_@ANI)