Rahul Gandhi taunts on Narendra Modi`s marital status, BJP hits back

Zee Media Bureau/Ritesh K Srivastava

Doda: With the spotlight shifting back on BJP`s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi`s marital status, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Friday took a dig at the main opposition party by saying that it talks of women empowerment but refuses to talk about the Gujarat Chief Minister`s wife. The Gandhi scion pointed out that the Gujarat BJP leader had mentioned his marital status for the first time while filing nominations for the 2014 Lok Sabha election. “I don`t know how many elections the Gujarat CM has fought, but first time he has written his wife`s name on the affidavit,” Rahul Gandhi said while addressing a rally in Doda in Jammu & Kashmir. The young Congress leader went on to say, “In Delhi, on posters talk is of giving respect to women, but in the affidavit there was no mention of wife till this time.” Further talking on women empowerment, Gandhi attacked all BJP-led state governments and said, "The BJP says we want to empower women, but in Karnataka, BJP ministers attack women." Modi has received flak ever since he mentioned Jashodaben as the name of his wife in an affidavit while filing his nomination papers in Vadodara, Gujarat. However, the BJP has reacted angrily to Congress leaders making personal attacks on its prime ministerial candidate and threatened to raise issues related to the Gandhi family. “If Rahul Gandhi is raising personal issues of Modi ji`s life, we can pick up loads of Gandhi family issues, which we don`t,” Ravi Shankar Prasad of BJP said. Prasad, who is the national spokesperson of BJP, also targeted Congress general secretary Digvijaya Singh who was the first to attack Modi over his marital status. “Digvijaya Singh is not treated seriously by his party members or the public, and neither do I,” Prasad said. Attacking the ruling party, the BJP leader said, “Congress used to talk so negatively about Atal ji. Now they are distressed over the elections so quoting him to downplay Modi.” Meanwhile, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has refused to comment on Narendra Modi`s marital status. "I neither want to make any comments on anyone`s private life, and, nor would it be correct to do so," Khurshid said. While filing a poll affidavit on Wednesday in Vadodara in Gujarat, Modi has for the first time acknowledged that he is married to Jashodaben, a retired school teacher, from whom he had separated decades ago.