Union Home Minister Amit Shah came down heavily on Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge with the “distasteful and disgraceful” remarks over comments the latter made at a public rally in Jammu and Kashmir. Addressing an election rally on September 29, 2023, he claimed that he would not “die until Prime Minister Narendra Modi is out of power. Shah reacted sharply to Kharge’s comments on social media.

In his reaction on X, Shah was going to term Kharge’s speech a “bitter display of spite” that inappropriately brought the Prime Minister into Kharge’s personal health matters. Shah said, “Yesterday, Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge Ji outdid himself, his leaders, and his party in being distasteful and disgraceful in his speech.” He pointed out that if Kharge had spoken more about Modi then what that says for itself is only the hate and fear the Congress nurtures for the Prime Minister. He pointed out very clearly that it is a fixated notion of the Opposition party rather than bringing importance to their agenda.

Kharge Falls Unwell At Rally

At the rally in Jasrota, Jammu, Kharge suffered a ‘syncopal attack,’ that forced him to halt his speech for some moments. Returning from it, he reassured the audience of his health, saying, “I am 83 years old. I am not going to die so early. I will stay alive till PM Modi is removed from power.” Comments that were meant to be words of determination attracted sharp criticism from Shah as well as others, who saw them as an unwarranted assault on Modi.

Amit Shah Wishes For Kharge’s health

But still, in yet another extension of his wishes for Kharge, Shah said, “As far as the health of Mr. Kharge Ji is concerned, Modi Ji prays, I pray, and we all pray that he lives a long, healthy life.” He even requested that Kharge should live long enough to be able to witness the “creation of a Viksit Bharat by 2047.” It was an effort by Shah to divert attention from Kharge’s controversial statement to a vision for a future united and progressive nation.