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BJP leader’s ‘spit’ remark against Bhupesh Baghel sparks controversy. CM hits back
"If you spit towards the sky, it will fall on your face only," Baghel responded to D Purandeswari.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader D Purandeswari’s remarks against Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel at the party’s three-day-long “Chintan Shivir” have triggered a major controversy. In a video which is going viral, Purandeswari, a former leader of the state’s ruling Congress, is seen saying that if BJP workers turn around and spit, Baghel and his entire Cabinet would be “swept away.”
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“The responsibility of bringing the BJP back to power lies with you. Our karyakartas are the backbone of our party. If today we are sitting here as leaders, then that is because of workers such as all of you. Hence, we want you to move ahead with a resolve. If all of you were to turn around and spit just once, Bhupesh Baghel and his entire Cabinet would be swept away. From today onwards, you will have to work with this resolve. Due to your hard work, we will again come back to power in 2023,” the BJP’s Chhattisgarh in-charge says, as seen in a video shared by news agency ANI. Her speech is met with loud applause.
The former Union minister in the Manmohan Singh-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was addressing party activists on the final day of the "Chintan Shivir" on Thursday, in Bastar.
Responding to Purandeswari, Baghel questioned her “mental state.” Speaking to reporters, the chief minister said, “What can I say about her statement? Who could have thought that her mental state would come down to this after joining the BJP? She was alright when she was with us. Moreover, if you spit towards the sky, it will fall on your face only.”
In the 2018 assembly elections in Chhattisgarh, the Congress had defeated the BJP, which had been in power here since 2003 under then chief minister Raman Singh. Baghel became the state’s third CM, ahead of TS Singh Deo.
Assembly elections will next take place in the state in 2023, just months ahead of the Lok Sabha elections the following year.
