Congress Slams PM Modi's 'Widow' Remark, Asks 'Is This Our Hindu Culture?'

Addressing a rally in Rajasthan’s Jaipur on December 4, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a scathing attack on Congress saying, under their governance, “unborn girls” were listed as “widows” and “received pensions.” 

"Now I’ll tell you why this dynasty is worried, why Congress leaders have lost their sleep. The reason is that Modi is taking steps and their shops are shutting down one by one. This is the cause of their worry. You can imagine, the kind of government the Congress ran, that a daughter who was not even born became a widow on paper under the Congress government, and her widow pension also started. Who was that widow who used to take away this money? Who was that Congress’s widow in whose account this money used to go?," PM Modi said.

Slamming the Congress party over charges of corruption and misgovernance, PM Modi alleged that scams took place under the previous Congress regimes and that Congress leaders “stole” the public’s money, including the senior citizens’ pensions and school students’ scholarship.

The comment has drawn flak from the Opposition with Congress leading condemnation of remark.

Siddaramaiah, Chief Minister of Karnataka took to Twitter and said, "New low by Narendra Modi. His insensitive comments on opposition leaders are a blot on the chair of PM. There are many things that he has to learn from Mr. Manmohan Singh. He has insulted the whole women fraternity in his urge to target opposition."

Kapil Sibal too slammed PM Modi saying, 'Uncultured barbs, uncultured leaders'.

After drawing flak, PM Modi however, on Sunday extended his greetings to former Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

"Best wishes to Smt. Sonia Gandhiji on her birthday. I pray for her long and healthy life," he tweeted.

(With inputs from agencies)