Amruta Fadnavis, wife of Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has called Prime Minister Narendra Modi the father of New India, adding that the country has two rashtra pita (father of the nation).
"We have two rashtra pita. Narendra Modi is the father of New India and Mahatma Gandhi is the father of the nation of earlier times," Amruta, a banker and singer, said during a mock court interview.
It evoked strong reactions from opposition Congress as well as Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi.
"She and the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) whose bidding she is obeying are most welcome to declare Modi as the Father of New India. In any case, Bapu would have long disowned the India of present times. The Maharashtra assembly should officially adopt and pass the resolution to declare Modi as the Father of Manuvadi Hindu Rashtra Bharat," Tushar Gandhi said in his reaction.
Congress leader and former Maharashtra minister Yashomati Thakur also slammed the senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader's wife over the remarks.
"People following the BJP and RSS ideology keep trying to kill Gandhiji again and again. They keep doing such things as they are obsessed with changing history by repeating lies and maligning great people like Gandhiji," Thakur said.
In the mock court interview (abhirup nyayalay), Amruta was asked about her calling Modi as rashtra pita last year.
The interviewer asked her if Modi is the rashtra pita, then who is Mahatma Gandhi.
Amruta replied that Mahatma Gandhi is the country's rashtra pita and Modi is the rashtra pita of New India.
"We have two rashtra pita; Narendra Modi is the rashtra pita of New India and Mahatma Gandhi is rashtra pita of that (earlier) era," she added.
Amruta's remarks came days after Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari faced flak from Opposition over his remarks about Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
After he was slammed by the Opposition for his comments on the Maratha warrior king, Koshyari had written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah explaining his stand and clarifying he would 'never even imagine' insulting such icons.
"I cannot even imagine in my dreams to insult icons like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Maharana Pratap and Shri Guru Govind Singh. You are aware that I do not hesitate to express regrets or apologise immediately even if I unintentionally made a mistake," Koshyari wrote in the letter addressed to Shah.
The letter came amid demands by the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi alliance that Koshyari be removed from his post for insulting Shivaji Maharaj.
