Kharge’s ‘illiterate Gujarat’ remark sparks BJP backlash ahead of Assembly elections
BJP leaders including Harsh Sanghavi and Sudhanshu Trivedi accuse Congress of divisive rhetoric after Kharge's remarks made during a Kerala rally.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge’s “those who are illiterate in Gujarat” remark has sparked a furious response from the BJP, including Gujarat’s Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, who accused him of insulting the people of Gujarat and North India by calling them illiterate. The saffron party also accused Congress of resorting to divide-and-rule politics ahead of the Assembly elections.
Addressing a rally in Idukki district ahead of the Kerala assembly elections, Kharge said people of the state are "educated and clever" and cannot be misled, unlike those in Gujarat and some other places.
"Don't misguide the people of Kerala. They are very clever, they are educated. Modi ji, Vijay (Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan), you both can fool those who are illiterate in Gujarat or other places, but you can't fool Kerala people," he said.
Gujarat Deputy CM hits back
Taking to X, Sanghavi pointed out that Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are from Gujarat and asked Kharge, “Why does Congress hate Gujarat so much? Why do you keep targeting the people of Gujarat time and again?”
Also Read: 'Where was your PM?': Kharge, Rijiju clash in Rajya Sabha over West Asia conflict
“Did the people of Gujarat throw you out of power, and is this revenge for that? This statement doesn't show your frustration— It reveals your true stature,” he added.
Trivedi widens attack
BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi questioned the implications of his comments for several national figures. Trivedi asked what Kharge thought about the “intelligence” of leaders such as Mahatma Gandhi, Vallabhbhai Patel, Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, noting their roots in Gujarat and north India.
“I would not like to ask about Rahul Gandhi because the entire country knows about him,” he said, in a swipe at the Congress leader.
Also Read: A joke, a jab, and a smile: Kharge’s quip on Deve Gowda gets PM Modi smiling
Trivedi maintained that while Kerala’s population is “very wise and educated,” successive governments led by Congress and Left parties had failed them.
“It's true that people of Kerala are very wise and educated. It's because of their wisdom that the BJP won the civic polls in Thiruvananthapuram after 45 years of Left rule. People of Kerala are very wise. That's why 'love jihad' was first noticed in Kerala”, he added.
He went on to claim that despite the electorate’s awareness, leadership within Congress and Left ranks was “very dangerous,” adding that voters would respond accordingly. “People of Kerala will give them a befitting reply in the upcoming elections”, he said.
Poonawalla alleges divide-and-rule politics
Another BJP spokesperson, Shehzad Poonawalla, described Kharge’s remarks as “shocking comments” directed at people in Gujarat and north India.
“Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has once again made a shocking comment against the people of Gujarat and North India. This shows the divide-and-rule policy of the Congress. They have abused people of Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh and called them illiterate just because they don't vote for Congress. When Congress loses elections, it abuses the people,” he said in a video message posted on X.
“Shocking: Cong insults Gujarat and North India,” he wrote separately.
Also Read: Congress, BJP lock horns in Rajya Sabha over LPG crisis amid West Asia tensions
Poonawalla also questioned whether leaders such as Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav endorsed Kharge’s remarks. “Does the Gujarat Congress agree with this? Do Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav agree with this? This is not the first time. Congress leaders like D K Suresh have called for a division between North and South India. They have abused North Indians and other people living in the North,” he said.
He further alleged a pattern of divisive rhetoric, pointing to past statements by opposition leaders. “Their chief minister in Punjab had once referred to people of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar as 'bhaiya'. DMK leaders routinely insult people from North India. What is this mindset? It shows that the Congress party only wants to divide people. First, they divided on religious lines, then on language, and now based on states. They always try to divide India and abuse those who do not vote for them,” Poonawalla said.
Bhandari invokes ‘origins’
Joining the criticism, BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari reiterated the charge of “divide and rule,” linking it to the party’s origins under A. O. Hume.
In a post on X, he said, “Congress, a party founded by Britisher A O Hume, practises 'divide and rule' just like the British did before Independence. No wonder the people of India have rejected this divisive Congress, which has ideological mentors like 'urban Naxals' and wants to pit one Indian against another. Congress is against India's unity.”
(With agency inputs)