"Grandson of 'Emergency dictator' displays real DNA": Arun Jaitley flays Rahul Gandhi for attacking ANI's Smita Prakash

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley hit out at Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday for attacking ANI Editor Smita Prakash.

Referring to Indira Gandhi's Emergency and the gag on the press during that time, Jaitley said that Rahul Gandhi has shown his 'real DNA' by intimidating an independent Editor. 

ANI's Editor Smita Prakash interviewed Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which the PM had spoken on several issues - from Demonetisation to Ram Mandir.

During a news briefing on the Rafale deal on Wednesday, Rahul Gandhi called Prakash 'pliable journalist' and said that she was questioning and answering in the interview. He also called the interview 'staged'.

"He (Modi) does not have the guts to come and sit in front of you. And I am coming here… you can ask me any question… I come here once in seven-ten days… and you saw the Prime Minister’s interview yesterday…matlab pliable journalist, woh question bi kar rahi thi, pradhan mantri ka answer bi de rahi thi, side mein (she was asking questions as well as giving answers),” he said

Earlier in Parliament, Rahul had said “…The entire nation is asking why the Prime Minister can speak for one-and-a-half hour in a staged interview and not answer the fundamental questions of Rafale.”

Editor Smita Prakash did not take the remark lying down. She immediately tweeted saying that Gandhi's remark on the interview was a cheap shot to attack her and said it was 'absurd' to ridicule her. She also said that this conduct was not expected from the president of the oldest party of India. 

However, Divya Spandana who handles Social Media and Digital Communications for the Congress continued the attack on the Editor.