New Delhi [India], May 20 : Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi criticised BJP IT cell in-charge Amit Malviya over his recent social media post targeting Congress leader and the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, suggesting the BJP to reconsider its social media strategy.
Amit Malviya had posted an edited image of Rahul Gandhi comparing him with Pakistan Army chief Asim Munir and suggesting he might receive Nishan-e-Pakistan -- highest civilian award in the neighbouring country.
Chaturvedi said such remarks were inappropriate at a time when political parties across the spectrum were standing united in the wake of the recent terrorist attack.
"At a time when the opposition leaders of both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in the all-party meeting supported the government and the armed forces to take every possible action against the terrorist attack..." she said.
"When the entire opposition is supporting and are going before the world (all party delegation) by keeping their personal differences aside and Amit Malviya is making statements on Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha, which is against the spirit of the work being done... The BJP should rethink its social media strategy," she added.
BJP's Amit Malviya accused Rahul Gandhi of "speaking the language of Pakistan" for asking about the alleged fallen jets of India, which he said has already been addressed by the Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Rajiv Ghai.
He also questioned Gandhi for not asking about the Pakistani jets that were destroyed.
"It is not surprising that Rahul Gandhi is speaking the language of Pakistan and its benefactors. He hasn't congratulated the Prime Minister on the flawless Operation Sindoor, which unmistakably showcases India's dominance. Instead, he repeatedly asks how many jets we lost--a question that has already been addressed in the DGMO briefings. Curiously, he hasn't once inquired about how many Pakistani jets were shot down during the conflict, or how many were destroyed while parked in their hangars when Indian forces pounded Pakistani airbases," Malviya said.
"What's next for Rahul Gandhi? The Nishan-e-Pakistan?" he added.
Congress leader Pawan Khera also lashed out at the BJP after Malviya's post.
Without naming Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Khera said that someone who went to eat biryani with former Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was more deserving of Nishan-e-Pakistan.
"As far as Nishaan-e-Pakistan is concerned, their leader, Morarji Desai, was the only Indian politician who was awarded it for leaking RAW's secrets. Nobody else got it...Some more people deserve Nishan-e-Pakistan, like Lal Krishna Advani, who called Jinnah a secular, and the person who went to eat biryani with Nawaz Sharif without being invited," Khera told ANI.
He also took a dig at Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar for informing Pakistan beforehand about the attacks on terror camps.
"We think he will get Nisha-e-Pakistan. There is another person who deserves Nisha-e-Pakistan- the one who said 'at the start of the action'. These are the words of EAM S Jaishankar, who informed Pakistan that we are taking action only on terrorist hideouts. He has very close relations with America. So now let's see what award he gets from which country," Khera added.
He further stated that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was engaged in "cartoongiri" during such a serious situation. "Do you expect a responsible political party, which is in power, to indulge in cartoongiri during such a serious situation? It is happening. When there was conflict, Congress and the opposition stood with the government. However, they were still engaged in all such nonsense. If you're being asked a question, answer it," Khera said.
He asserted that Congress didn't have faith in the political leadership of the country and said that they should have informed civilians in Poonch before informing Pakistan about the attack.
"The entire country is satisfied with what the DGMO told us. However, we don't have faith in the political leadership of this country. We will continue to ask them questions. You (the government) say that you informed Pakistan beforehand. You didn't inform the civilians in Poonch who were killed? Is this the reason why Azhar Masood and Hafiz Saeed could escape?" Khera added.