NDA’s Bihar bandh on September 4 to protest ‘abusive language against Modi, his mother’ will be led by women

A video that surfaced on August 27 had showed a man draped in a Congress flag allegedly using abusive language and making derogatory remarks on stage at an event organised by a local Congress leader to coincide with Voter Adhikar Yatra passing through the area. No leader who was participating in the rally was at the event.

On Friday, the Darbhanga police said the man seen in the video was identified as Mohammad Rizvi, a local resident, and that he had been arrested.

NDA leaders on Tuesday said they were calling the bandh to register their protest against what they described as “indecent, shameful, and unacceptable” political discourse. They said it would exempt emergency services and rail transport.

‘Women will register protest’

BJP Bihar president Dr Dilip Jaiswal said, “This incident has brought shame to Bihar. A mother is revered as a divine figure. How can someone even think of using abusive language for the one who gives us life and nurtures us?”

Jaiswal said the NDA women’s wing would lead the protest as a mark of respect for womanhood. “This is not just an insult to one mother, but to all mothers. The NDA women’s wing has taken the lead and called for a Bihar bandh on September 4. This is the first time in the state that a bandh will be led by women to uphold the dignity of mothers and sisters,” he said.

“Today, the whole of Bihar is ashamed. Our mothers and sisters have been insulted. That is why we have called for this protest. We appeal to the public to support the bandh. We will not tolerate such behaviour from leaders speaking on the RJD-Congress platform. May God give them better sense,” Jaiswal said.

JD(U) state president Umesh Singh Kushwaha criticised the RJD and Congress’s Mahagathbandhan alliance for not issuing an apology over the incident. “The fact that no apology has come so far is shocking and shows arrogance… The mother holds the status of a goddess in Indian society. This is not just an insult to the Prime Minister and his mother, but an assault on democratic values and societal norms,” he said.

He warned that Bihar would not stay silent in the face of such conduct and that it would respond strongly.

JD(U) women’s wing president Bharti Mehta said, “Using such language for the Prime Minister’s mother from Mithila is not only an insult to this region, but to women across the country and the world. A Prime Minister and a President are the pride of the nation. On September 4, women will take to the streets to register their protest.”

BJP Mahila Morcha vice-president Baby Kumari, LJP (Ram Vilas) women’s wing leader Shobha Sinha, and RLM representative Smriti Kushwaha also urged women and citizens across the state to participate in the bandh.

‘Crocodile tears’

Meanwhile, Congress spokesperson Gyan Ranjan Gupta said it was the BJP that did not respect women. “The Congress has always upheld the value of respecting women, but in stark contrast, Prime Minister Modi and the BJP, who have been shedding crocodile tears, have never truly respected women. Where were the NDA leaders when the women of Manipur were subjected to atrocities, exploitation, and torture? The ones who were paraded naked or assaulted physically and verbally, were they not someone’s mothers, sisters, or daughters?” he asked.

“Despite holding the highest office, Mr Modi himself has made derogatory remarks about women on multiple occasions. He even once refused to acknowledge his own mother, claiming that he wasn’t biologically born but was divinely incarnated. And now, in Bihar, he is using the memory of his late mother to seek votes. But Bihar and the country are no longer going to fall for this facade,” he said.

Last Friday, the row had also escalated into a physical confrontation between the workers of the Congress and the BJP at the former’s office, resulting in injuries to several people and damage to vehicles parked inside the Congress office premises. An FIR and counter FIR were registered based on complaints filed by both parties.