Ghaziabad district magistrate Ritu Maheswari has submitted a report to Uttar Pradesh chief electoral officer (CEO) L Venkateshwar Lu, a day after Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath sparked a controversy by allegedly calling the Indian Army “Modiji ki Sena” [PM Modi’s soldiers] at an election rally.
Confirming this, Lu said the DM’s report has been forwarded to the Election Commission, which will examine if the CM’s speech violated the model code of conduct for Lok Sabha polls.
Although the CEO refused to share details of the report, it purportedly contains clips of Adityanath’s speech.
The chief minister’s remark was criticised by the opposition parties, which demanded an apology from him for allegedly “insulting the armed forces”.
Adityanath, who addressed election meetings in Ghaziabad and Greater Noida on Sunday, had lashed out at the Congress for what he called was its “soft approach towards terrorism and terrorists”.
“The Congress-led government used to serve biryani to terrorists while Modi ji’s army sends bullets and bombs their way… Congress encourages terrorists such as [Jaish-e-Mohammed chief] Masood Azhar by adding ‘ji’ after their name,” Adityanath was seen saying in a video clip put out by a news agency.
The Congress hit back immediately. “They are India’s armed forces, not the private army of ‘Prachaar Mantri’. Adityanath must apologise,” said Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi.
{{/usCountry}}The Congress hit back immediately. “They are India’s armed forces, not the private army of ‘Prachaar Mantri’. Adityanath must apologise,” said Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi.
{{/usCountry}}West Bengal chief minister and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee also criticized the remark. “It is shocking to hear the UP CM saying that the Indian Army is ‘Modi Sena’. Such blatant personalisation and usurping of our beloved Indian Army is an insult and a humiliation,” Banerjee tweeted.
Meanwhile, BJP spokesman Navin Srivastava said, “What’s wrong with the chief minister saying Modi ji’s army? I thought that the sentence was a spontaneous outburst of a proud Indian elated at the manner in which country’s defence forces have been given a free hand in dealing with any adversary out to challenge India. Tell me would it be wrong if I say ‘our army’. Is it our fault that so far our political leadership largely shied away from any association with the army,”