As senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh thanked the German foreign affairs ministry after it took note of party colleague Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification, the BJP reiterated its charge that the Congress wanted “foreign interference” in India’s affairs. Left red-faced by Singh yet again, who has been at the centre of many controversies, the Congress promptly attempted to do some damage control. “Thank you Germany Foreign Affairs Ministry and Richard Walker for taking note of how Democracy is being compromised in India through persecution of Rahul Gandhi,” Singh wrote on Twitter. Thank you Germany Foreign Affairs Ministry and Richard Walker @rbsw for taking note of how the Democracy is being compromised in India through persecution of @RahulGandhi — digvijaya singh (@digvijaya_28) March 30, 2023 Hitting out, Information and Broadcasting minister Anurag Thakur said the Congress was a “disgrace to the nation,” adding that “the Congress and Rahul Gandhi don't believe in fighting India's democratic, political and legal battle within the country, hence, inviting foreign powers to interfere in our internal matters”. Without taking names, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said on Twitter,"@INCIndia firmly believes that India's democratic processes themselves have to deal with the threats posed to our democracy by Mr. Modi's assault on our institutions & his politics of vendetta, intimidation, threats & harassment.” .@INCIndia firmly believes that India's democratic processes themselves have to deal with the threats posed to our democracy by Mr. Modi's assault on our institutions & his politics of vendetta, intimidation, threats & harrasment. INC & Oppn parties will take him on fearlessly. — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) March 30, 2023 Singh has stirred a couple of rows in the last few months. On the fourth anniversary of the Pulwama attack on February 14, Singh had said the CRPF soldiers had lost their life in the Pulwama incident in Kashmir four years ago due to “blatant intelligence failure”. “Today we pay homage to the 40 CRPF Martyrs who died because of the blatant Intelligence Failure in Pulwama. I hope all the Martyred Families have been suitably rehabilitated,” he tweeted. The BJP accused the Congress of giving “a clean chit to Pakistan” with the remarks. In January, Singh questioned the surgical strikes along the Line of Control (LoC) in 2016. Addressing a public rally during the Bharat Jodo Yatra’s J&K leg in Jammu, he said, “They (Centre) talk about surgical strikes and that they have killed so many of them but there is no proof. All they do is spread lies.” A day later, Rahul, who was adressing a press conference in Jammu as part of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, sought to distance himself from the remarks. Terming Singh’s remarks as “ridiculous”, Rahul underlined that he “completely disagreed”. “I don’t agree with what Digvijaya Singh has said. We completely trust our Army. The Army doesn’t need to furnish proof if it does something. I personally completely disagree with what he said,” he said. A Madhya Pradesh CM of 10 years, Singh also served as the party’s general secretary in charge of several states over the years. Earlier statements by Digvijaya that have landed the Congress and UPA government in a spot include calling the 2008 Batla House encounter fake and seeking a judicial probe. After the November 26, 2008, Mumbai terror attack, Digvijaya said he had spoken to Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare hours before he was killed and he had talked of receiving threats from Hindu extremists.
