In a tit-for-tat, Renuka to sue PM Modi over 'Surpanakha' remark

Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury on Friday said she will file a defamation case against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his alleged 'Surpanakha' comment made in Parliament in 2018. The development comes after a Surat court held Rahul Gandhi guilty on Thursday for his remark against Modi 'surname' comment and sentenced him to a two-year jail term.

Sharing an old video on micro-blogging Twitter, the former Union Minister wrote,''This classless megalomaniac referred to me as Surpanakha on the floor of the house. I will file a defamation case against him. Let's see how fast courts will act now..(sic).''

Chowdhury's allegation dates back to 2018 when PM Modi sarcastically said, "Meri aapse vinti hai Renuka ji ko kuch mat kahiye. Ramayan serial ke baad aisi hansi sunne ka saubhagya aaj jaake mila hai (Please do not say anything to Renuka. After the Ramayana serial, we got the privilege of hearing this kind of laughter only today.)"

Her announcement on Twitter got support from Congress Leader Digvijaya Singh who tweeted, "You must immediately file defamation suit against him today. You have waited too long."

The case was filed against Gandhi for his alleged "how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?" remarks on a complaint lodged by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi.

The Lok Sabha MP from Wayanad made the remarks while addressing a rally at Kolar in Karnataka ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Congress has been claiming the defamation case is politically motivated and agenda-driven to intimidate and harass Congress and specifically Rahul Gandhi.