Rahul Gandhi 'insulted' Northeast by not wearing 'Gamosa' at Rashtrapati Bhavan's At-Home: BJP
New Delhi (PTI): A political row erupted on Monday over Rahul Gandhi allegedly refusing to wear an Assamese 'Gamosa' given to all the guests at a reception hosted by President Droupadi Murmu, with the BJP alleging that the Congress leader insulted the country's Northeast.
The BJP also accused the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha of showing disregard for President Murmu by not wearing the 'Gamosa' while the Congress countered by pointing out that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had also not worn the "patka (scarf)".
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma demanded an "unconditional apology" from Gandhi, alleging that it was deeply insensitive and insulting to the people of the entire Northeast with the Congress leader choosing not to wear the traditional patka, which is a symbol of the region's rich cultural heritage.
The development took place after a section of the media claimed that all guests except Gandhi wore the Gamosa presented to them at the event.
Citing certain media reports, BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla said in a post on X, "Shameful! Rahul Gandhi has insulted the north east and also disrespected our very hon'ble President."
Hitting out Gandhi, Sarma said that times may change, but the attitude of the "de facto supremo" of the Congress party "regrettably" appears unchanged.
"From the President and the Prime Minister to foreign dignitaries, everyone wore the Patka with respect and pride. Mr Gandhi alone stood apart, reinforcing a perception of disregard towards the North East," the Assam chief minister wrote on X.
Such a conduct explains why his party has "lost the trust of the region and much of the country. Yet, this repeated insensitivity continues", he charged.
"Mr Rahul Gandhi must issue an unconditional apology to the people of the North East for this affront. The people of the region deserve respect," he added.
The Congress hit back at the BJP with the party media and publicity department head Pawan Khera posting on X a picture of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, asking the Assam chief minister if he will demand an apology from Singh also for not wearing the patka.
"Hey @himantabiswa, will you seek an apology from @rajnathsingh ji too? Or your entire strategy to fight anti incumbency is to pick up such non issues?" Khera asked, tagging both Singh and Biswa in his post on the micro-blogging platform.
Congress MP Manickam also slammed the BJP over the issue and asked the Assam chief minister why Defence Minister Rajnath Singh did not wear the Northeast patka.
"The 2016 batch of betrayer must stop this nonsense. Why is @rajnathsingh ji not wearing the North east patka then? Stop dragging the Hon'ble President @rashtrapatibhvn into your cheap politics," Tagore said in a post on X.
"The 2016 batch of betrayer must stop this nonsense. Why is @rajnathsingh ji not wearing the North east patka then? Stop dragging the Hon'ble President @rashtrapatibhvn into your cheap politics," Tagore said.
This comes on a day the Congress accused the NDA government of insulting the Leaders of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge respectively, by seating them in the third row during the Republic Day parade event at Kartavya Path.
Sharing pictures of their leaders seated in the back rows during the ceremony, several Congress leaders raised questions over the "protocol mess-up" and propriety.
Hitting back, Poonawalla accused the Congress of putting "entitlement and ego" as well as "parivar and position" of Gandhi family above the people.
"They feel 'parivar tantra (family system)' is above 'sanvidhan tantra (constitutional system)'. Seating is decided by a set format -- Warrant or Table of Precedence. One can see even senior cabinet ministers around or even behind Rahul Gandhi but none of them made it an issue," the BJP spokesperson said in a post on X.
"Rahul thinks he is the owner of India? By the way, why does he bunk important programmes? Where was he during the VP Oath? CJI Oath? I-Day programme?" Poonawalla asked.
Reacting sharply, another BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari accused the Congress of politicising the seating arrangements at the Republic Day and called Gandhi an "insincere politician".
"Shameful of the Congress to politicise even seating arrangements at Republic Day'. Rahul Gandhi is an insincere politician, who chooses politics over national interest," Bhandari charged.
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Nat Sciver-Brunt's first-ever ton of WPL history powers MI's 15-run victory against RCB
Vadodara (PTI): Nat Sciver-Brunt (100 not out) hit the first-ever century of Women’s Premier League history in its fourth edition as dominant Mumbai Indians beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru by 15 runs, despite Richa Ghosh's whirlwind 90, here on Monday.
In a must-win game to remain in contention for play-offs, defending champions Mumbai hit their strides to produce a near-perfect performance with the bat, piling up 199 for four.
But, despite making early inroads to leave RCB reeling at 35 for 5 inside the powerplay, MI bowlers appeared clueless against Richa who hammered 10 fours and six sixes to make 90 off 50 balls in her team's 184 for 9.
RCB collected 43 runs in the last two overs, with India all-rounder Amanjot Kaur being smacked for three sixes in a row by Richa.
Hayley Matthews (56 and 3/10), who had earlier struck a vital half-century, jolted MI twice as she accounted for skipper Smriti Mandhana (6) and Georgia Voll (9) in the fourth over, and for Radha Yadav (0) in her next.
Shabnim Ismail (2/25), who had struck first to remove Grace Harris (15), cleaned up Gautami Naik (1) for her second wicket while also took a sharp catch in the deep to help Matthews dismiss Radha.
With the win, Mumbai jumped to second spot with six points from seven matches. Delhi Capitals and Gujarat Giants are also on six points from six matches each but Mumbai have better Net Run Rate.
Earlier, England's Sciver-Brunt (100 not out) struck the first-ever century in WPL to fire Mumbai Indians to a formidable 199for 4.
Sciver-Brunt’s 57-ball unbeaten ton and Matthews’ 56 laid the foundation for a big total for Mumbai Indians.
Matthews and Sciver-Brunt put on 131 runs off 73 balls for the second wicket in a whirlwind partnership in which they not only rotated strike well but unleashed a flurry of boundaries.
Matthews struck nine fours to make 56 off 39 balls while Sciver-Brunt hammered 16 fours and one six for her 100 not out.
The pair came together early in the third over when Lauren Bell (2/21) trapped Sajeevan Sajana (7) in front of the wickets.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai Indians: 199 for 4 in 20 overs (Hayley Matthews 56, Nat Sciver-Brunt 100 not out; Lauren Bell 2/21) beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru 184/9 in 20 overs (Richa Ghosh 90 not out; Shabnim Ismail 2/25, Hayley Matthews 3/10) by 15 runs.
