Congress seeks apology from Lal on remarks against Sonia Gandhi

New Delhi: Congress activists staged a protest march on Monday and demanded an apology from Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal for his controversial statement about Congress president Sonia Gandhi Addressing a BJP rally, Lal said in Sonipat, “After the defeat in the Lok Sabha election, Rahul (Gandhi) quit as party president and said the new Congress chief would not be from the Gandhi family. We welcomed his decision. It is good to end dynasty politics. Then, these people started searching (for a new president)... After three months, they made Sonia Gandhi the Congress chief. It was like khoda pahaad, nikli chuhiya, woh bhi mari hui... (like digging up a mountain to find a mouse, that too a dead one).”

Lashing out at the CM, Haryana PCC president Kumari Selja said, “This is not new for you, CM Lal, to make disrespectful comments against women. By making these comments against Sonia Gandhiji, you have insulted all women... It is this attitude that has led to the people calling Haryana the crime capital of India, ” Selja said, adding that the people of the state, especially women, will give Lal a befitting reply on the polling day.

Terming Lal’s remarks on Sonia Gandhi “uncivilised”, Congress spokesperson Ragini Nayak said: “The RSS has always been anti-women and now BJP leaders occupying constitutional posts are actively propagating this anti-women mind-set... The Congress will give it a befitting reply.” Mahila Congress leader Sushmita Dev said Lal’s’s remarks against the Congress president “are deplorable and unparliamentary” and termed it a “a clear

reflection of his and the BJP’s disrespectful attitude towards women”.

PCC working president of Haryana Nitin Raut called Lal a khacchar for his remarks against his party president.