Rahul says it was wrong to comment on Army chief, snubs MP Sandeep Dikshit

Condemning Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit’s remarks on Indian Army chief Bipin Rawat, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi said that it was wrong for politicians to comment on the Army chief.

Addressing the Congress delegates meeting in Bengaluru on Monday, Rahul said, “Our army serves the country. There is no need for politicians to comment on the Army chief - it’s completely wrong.” Gandhi added that there was no need to drag the issue as the leader had withdrawn his statement.

Gandhi publicly reprimanded Sandeep Dikshit, a former MP, who has left the party redfaced following his comments on Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, who he had compared to a ‘sadak ka goonda’. Referring to Rawat’s justification on the army using a civilian as a human shield against stone-pelting protesters in Jammu and Kashmir, Dikshit had said that the Army chief had sounded like a roadside goon.

There was an immediate backlash from the BJP, which demanded an apology from both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The saffron party had also sought an expulsion of Dikshit. Following strong criticisms, Dikshit had withdrawn his statements and had tendered an apology.

While the Congress leadership had distanced itself from the issue, Rahul broke the party silence while addressing Karnataka partymen in Bengaluru, after participating in the re-launch of the National Herald, a Congress-run newspaper.

Rahul, who had also remained silent on BJP national president Amit Shah’s “Chatur baniya” description of Mahatma Gandhi, used the platform to attack the BJP leader. “The RSS and BJP have said a lot of things about Mahatma Gandhi. But, the whole nation knows who he was. Even the British knew what they were up against, and who they were confronting,” he added.

• Rahul Gandhi in Bengaluru
• Congress on Dikshit
• Sandeep Dikshit