Thiruvananthapuram: The BJP on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on senior Congress leaders over Jairam Ramesh’s criticism of BJP MPs praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Parliament, likening it to members of the North Korean assembly praising their supreme leader.
The BJP said that Rahul Gandhi and his “handlers”, including Ramesh, had overinvested in a narrative that India’s democracy, secularism, and Constitution were at risk-a claim it said was believed by no one except “a few jokers” in the Congress party.
Speaking to the media, BJP Kerala president Rajeev Chandrasekhar responded to the allegations made by Ramesh in an interview with PTI.
In the interview, Ramesh said that while sitting in the Indian Parliament, he felt as though he was in the North Korean Parliament, as ruling party MPs were constantly praising Modi on every subject.
Chandrasekhar countered that no one in India or North Korea would believe the Congress party’s narrative.
“What did the Grand Mufti Kanthapuram A P Aboobacker Musliyar say when he met the PM? Even Muslims know that India is the safest country for them in the world. It is only unpalatable for a few jokers in the Congress party,” Chandrasekhar told reporters.
“They travel 50 times a year on holidays anyway. If they choose to go and live in North Korea, I will be the first to buy Jairam Ramesh a ticket,” he added.
Chandrasekhar, a former colleague of Ramesh in the Rajya Sabha, said that people of India chanted “Modi, Modi” in 2014, 2019, and 2024 because they loved and trusted him.
He said Modi has delivered on his promises and has achieved in the last 12 years what decades of Congress leadership could not.
“So that is a fact. Jairam Ramesh and Rahul Gandhi should accept that fact. That is the real truth. The people of India love Prime Minister Modi. MPs in Parliament support him. People like me trust him implicitly,” Chandrasekhar said.
The BJP state president also criticised the Congress and the CPI(M) for not condemning the Iranian attacks on GCC countries, saying this reflected their appeasement politics. He said the “hypocrisy” of the CPI(M) and the Congress was evident in Kerala.
“It is surprising that when a full-blown conflict is underway in the Middle East, where thousands of Malayalis live in Gulf countries, the CPI(M) and the Congress condemn only the US and Israel for attacking Iran, while remaining silent on the risks faced by our people in the Gulf due to attacks by Iran,” Chandrasekhar said.
He alleged that both parties adopt a similar approach towards political Islam and radical elements.
Chandrasekhar claimed that these parties have often spoken in support of certain Islamic organisations, whether it be Jamaat-e-Islami or Iran, while remaining silent on Iran’s actions against Gulf countries.
He also criticised Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Pinarayi Vijayan, accusing them of “selective responses” to global issues.
Regarding election preparations, Chandrasekhar said the candidate list is likely to be finalised by mid-March, allowing about a month for campaigning.
He added that the BJP state unit and its NDA allies were holding a manifesto discussion meeting at the party’s state headquarters earlier in the day.
He said the party has been holding extensive discussions with alliance partners and has 12 years of Modi’s governance record to draw upon. However, he did not confirm whether Modi would release the manifesto during his visit to Kochi on March 11.
“I would prefer not to comment on that at this stage, as we need to finalise the manifesto and hold discussions on it. I do not think March 11, when Modi ji visits, will be the day we release it,” Chandrasekhar said.
“However, he will certainly speak about several issues that will be part of the manifesto and what we intend to promise the people of Kerala,” he added.
