New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Ramesh Bidhuri called Delhi chief minister Atishi a “deer running in the forest”, stoking a fresh row with his controversial remark.
At a rally in the national capital on Wednesday, Bidhuri said, “Dilli ki janta nark bhog rahi hai galiyon mei… galiyon ki halat dekhiye… Kabhi Atishi nahi gayi milne logon se. Lekin ab chunaav ke samay jaise jungle mei hirni bhaagti hai vaise Atishi Dilli ki sadko pr hirni jaise ghoom rahi hain (The people of Delhi are suffering in the streets of Delhi… Look at the condition of the streets… In the last four years, Atishi never came to meet the people and now when the elections are around the corner, she is roaming on the streets of Delhi like a deer runs in the forest.”
Bidhuri, who represented South Delhi in the Lok Sabha from 2014 to 2024, has now been fielded by BJP as its candidate for Kalkaji, where he will contest against Atishi in the upcoming Assembly elections.
He made such unseemly remarks earlier too
This is not the first time when Bidhuri has made an inappropriate and unseemly remark against Atishi. Earlier on January 6, Bidhuri said at an election rally in Delhi’s Rohini: “This Marlena (surname used earlier by Atishi) became Singh, changed name. Kejriwal swore over his children not to go with the corrupt Congress, Marlena changed father. Earlier, she was Marlena, now she has become Singh. This is their character.”
While opposition parties hit out at Bidhuri for his remark, Delhi BJP media department head Praveen Shankar Kapoor issued a statement urging political leaders to avoid making “personal, gender-related, or family-related comments” about others. At a press conference later, Atishi broke down in tears and strongly condemned Bidhuri for his comment.
Atishi was quoted as saying by ANI: “ I want to tell Ramesh Bidhuri, that my father was a teacher throughout his life, he has taught thousands of children coming from poor and lower-middle-class families, now he is 80 years old…now he is so ill that he can’t even walk without help. Will you (Ramesh Bidhuri) do such a dirty thing for the sake of election? He has come down to the level where he is abusing an old man. I never thought that this country’s politics could stoop so low.”
Delhi will go to polls on February 5 to elect its 70-member assembly, with the counting of votes scheduled for February 8.
