Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh, who lost to Bharatiya Janata Party leader Pragya Singh Thakur from the Bhopal Lok Sabha constituency, said on Friday that “the ideology of the killer of Mahatma Gandhi had won”. Thakur defeated Singh by a margin of 3,64,822 votes.
“Today in this country, the ideology of the killer of Mahatma Gandhi won and the ideology of Gandhi lost,” Singh told reporters according to ANI. “This is a cause of concern for me.”
Thakur had courted controversy during the poll campaign for calling Nathuram Godse, who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi, a patriot. “Nathuram Godse was a deshbhakt [patriot], he is and will remain a deshbhakt,” she said. “Those calling him a terrorist should instead look within. They will be given a befitting reply in this election.” Thakur had apologised later, but her remarks were criticised across party lines.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said that he will never be able to forgive Thakur.
Thakur had also claimed that Anti-terrorism Squad chief Hemant Karkare died in the 2008 Mumbai terror attack because she cursed him.
Thakur faces terrorism charges and is an accused in the Malegaon blasts of 2008 that killed six people. She is currently out on bail on health grounds.
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