‘The absolute last thing I am scared of is Narendra Modi’: Rahul Gandhi responds to surname jibe

Responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s jibe on Rahul Gandhi’s surname, the latter said that the prime minister insulted him but the remarks were not expunged from the records. He retorted that PM Modi was “shaking” and “drinking water”, and could never reply to the questions he posed on the Adani connection. He also said that the last thing he is scared of is PM Modi. 

Criticising the decision to expunge certain portions of his speech, Rahul Gandhi said, “He says why is your name Gandhi and not Nehru. So the Prime Minister of the country directly insults me. But his words were not taken off the record.”

"Modi thinks that he is very powerful and people will get scared of him. He doesn't realise that the absolute last thing that I am scared of is Narendra Modi,” he said. 

Rahul Gandhi, in his speech at the Parliament, had raised questions regarding the Hindenburg report on Adani Group that accused the conglomerate of accounting fraud and stock manipulation. 

"All you had to do was look at my face, when I was speaking (in Lok Sabha) and look at his (Modi) face, while he was speaking. Look at how many times he drank water, how his hands were shaking, when he was drinking water and you will understand everything", the Wayanad MP said at a public gathering in his constituency. He added that the Prime Minister will be forced to face the power of truth.

"It doesn't matter whether he is Prime Minister of India, whether he has all the (investigating) agencies... because the truth is not on his side. And one day, he will be forced to face his truth,” said Rahul Gandhi.

The Congress leader said that he asked the Prime Minister some questions on his relationship with Gautam Adani and how the Adani Group has grown so fast. “The Prime Minister did not answer a single question. His response to my questions was why you are not called Nehru, why you are called Gandhi,” he said. He said that “maybe Mr Modi doesn't understand it but generally in India our surname is the surname of our father”.

Gandhi said that he wrote to the Lok Sabha Speaker with every single point they have removed with supporting proof. 

He said that in his speech, he did not use any bad or abusive language but only pointed out the link between Adani and Modi. Gandhi said that after his speech was complete, most of the speech was edited out and not allowed to go on record. 

(With PTI inputs)

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