India has two 'rashtra pita', PM Modi father of New India, says Amruta Fadnavis; Congress slams her

Mumbai, Dec 21: Amruta Fadnavis, wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, has called Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the father of New India, adding 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.

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.

Congress leader and former Maharashtra minister Yashomati Thakur slammed the senior BJP 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.