Cong Suspends Mani Shankar Aiyar For His ‘Neech’ Remark on PM Modi
He (Modi) is a ‘neech kism ka aadmi’ (a vile man) who has no ‘sabhyata’ (civility), Mani Shankar had said.
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The Congress on Thursday, 7 December, suspended the primary membership of Mani Shankar Aiyar after the Gandhi family loyalist set off a firestorm by calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi a “neech aadmi” (a vile person), remarks fraught with adverse consequences for the party in poll-bound Gujarat.
“He (Modi) is a ‘neech kism ka aadmi’ (a vile man) who has no ‘sabhyata’ (civility),” said Aiyar, who has often courted controversy with his off-the-cuff remarks.
After the rebuke by the Congress leadership, Aiyar was soon on national television proffering clarification, insisting it was because of his poor understanding of Hindi language that he used the word, and offered an apology.
The Prime Minister, while inaugurating the Ambedkar International Centre on 7 December, had hit out at the Congress, saying parties seeking votes in the name of the architect of the Indian Constitution tried to erase his contribution to nation-building.
Aiyar had asked Modi, “What is the need for doing dirty politics on such an occasion?”.
Modi, who was in Surat, latched on to Aiyar's comments, saying it was an insult to Gujarat.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley also lashed out at Mani Shankar Aiyer for his remark, saying it displays the mindset that “only one elite family” can rule this country.
Video Editor: Mohd Ibrahim
(With inputs from PTI.)
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