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Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar has sparked controversy with his remarks targeting Amruta Fadnavis, the wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Criticising Mr Fadnavis' recent 'Dharamyuddh' comment, the Congress leader said that the responsibility of upholding 'dharma' should rest with everyone, and it cannot be that while others work to protect 'dharma', Mr Fadnavis' wife is "making reels on Instagram".
Speaking at a Nagpur rally, Mr Kumar said, "It can't be that the responsibility of saving religion is ours, while the Deputy Chief Minister's wife is making reels on Instagram. Everyone must save the religion together." His comments were a response to Mr Fadnavis' recent appeal for a "Dharamyuddh" to counter what he termed as "vote jihad."
"Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that this is a 'Dharamyudh'. This is a good thing. It is our Dharam to protect democracy and the Constitution for which I am standing and giving a speech today. Whichever leader talks about saving religion, you have to ask only one thing to that leader: will your son or daughter join us in this fight to save religion?" Mr Kumar said.
The BJP, quick to react, condemned Mr Kumar's remarks. Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla criticised him on social media, claiming that the comments were an affront to Marathi women. "Amruta Fadnavis' insult is an insult to every Marathi woman," he wrote.
Last week, Mr Fadnavis, campaigning in Aurangabad ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections on November 20, said, "A vote Jihad has begun in the state now. We saw that in the Lok Sabha elections. In Dhule, we were ahead by 1.90 lakh votes but the Malegaon (assembly segment) had 1.94 lakh votes and we were defeated by only 4,000 votes. This vote Jihad was the reason for our defeat there because we were not together."
The upcoming election will see Maharashtra's ruling Mahayuti coalition and opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) fight for 288 seats. Counting is scheduled for November 23. The 2019 polls saw the BJP with 105 seats, Shiv Sena with 56, and Congress securing 44. The MVA alliance gained momentum in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, winning 30 out of 48 seats, while the Mahayuti coalition claimed 17 seats.