Senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Digvijaya Singh on Saturday found himself at the centre of a controversy after his social media post appeared to praise the organisational strength of the BJP and the RSS. In a post on X written in Hindi, Singh said he had come across the image on Quora that he found “very impressive”. The old photograph he shared was from the 1990s that purportedly showed BJP veteran LK Advani at an event in Gujarat, with a young Narendra Modi seated on the floor nearby.
“In what way did the grassroots swayamsevak of RSS and the worker of Jan Sangh sit on the floor at the feet of leaders and become the Chief Minister of the state and the Prime Minister of the country. This is the power of the organization. Jai Siya Ram,” he posted.
The post triggered reactions from BJP that targeted Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over Singh’s tweet. BJP spokesperson CR Kesavan said that Singh’s comment has exposed the “autocratic and undemocratic” leadership of the grand old party.
ALSO READAssam SIR: 10.56 lakh names deleted from electoral rolls; 93,000 marked doubtful voters
Singh later says ‘staunch opponent of RSS, Modi ji’
As the backlash grew, Singh clarified that his remarks had been misconstrued. “The media has misunderstood me. I have praised the organisation. I am a staunch opponent of the RSS and Modi ji,” he said.
The controversy came days after Singh publicly called for internal reforms and greater decentralisation within the Congress, an issue he also reportedly raised during the CWC meeting. In a post addressed to Rahul Gandhi earlier this month, Singh praised him for his stance on socio-economic issues but urged him to focus on organisational restructuring. He argued that just as institutions such as the Election Commission require reforms, the Congress too needs more decentralised and pragmatic functioning.
What happened at CWC meeting after Singh’s post?
Singh’s latest post came ahead of the crucial Congress Working Committee meeting on Saturday. However, inside the CWC meeting, the party’s leadership sought to refocus attention on its opposition agenda. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, in his opening remarks, said it was the party’s collective responsibility to formulate a concrete plan to oppose the renaming of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
ALSO READWhy is Karti Chidambaram questioning Infosys’ Rs 250-cr land sale to Bengaluru real estate developer
Addressing a press conference after the CWC meeting, Kharge said the party would spearhead a nationwide ‘MGNREGA Bachao Abhiyan’ from January 5 in response to the Centre’s move to replace the rural employment scheme with newly enacted VB-GRAMG Bill.
He stressed that MGNREGA was not merely a welfare scheme but a constitutional guarantee. “MGNREGA is not just a scheme, it is the ‘Right to Work’ given by the Constitution,” Kharge said. “People are angry over the repeal of MGNREGA. The government will have to face the consequences,” he told the press. Kharge said the issue was discussed in detail at the CWC meeting. “At the CWC meeting, we took an oath that a campaign would be launched with MGNREGA as its focal point,” he added. |
