The Election Commission of India (EC) has sought a report from poll authorities in Jharkhand about the “Rape in India” remark that Rahul Gandhi is said to have made at an election rally in Jharkhand last week.

The decision followed BJP leaders approaching the poll panel against the Congress leader alleging that he was targeting political rivals by using rape, agencies reported. Union minister Smriti Irani had last week led a party delegation to the EC office and demanded action against  Rahul for his remark at the election rally.

“He had used rape as a political weapon to settle scores with Narendra Modi,” Irani had said after the meeting.

Rahul had taken a dig at the Modi government’s Make in India campaign at the election rally in Godda last week over the rising cases of sexual assaults across the country.

“Narendra Modiji used to say ‘Make in India’ but nowadays wherever you look, it is ‘Rape in India’.

In Uttar Pradesh, Modi’s MLA raped a woman, then she met with an accident but Narendra Modi did not utter a word,” he had said in reference to the case against expelled legislator Kuldeep Sengar.

Both houses of parliament had to be adjourned after BJP MP’s took umbrage at Rahul’s remarks. There were shrill cries for his apology by the Congress leader not only stood his ground, but riled the ruling party even by not just refusing to apologise but saying: “I am not Rahul Savarkar. I am Rahul Gandhi. I will not apologise.”

This in turn triggered further mudslinging with the former Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis reminding Rahul that “just outing Gandhi in your name doesn’t make you a Gandhi”.

“Rahul Gandhi’s statement is shameful, maybe he does not know about Savarkar. He faced torture for 12 years in the cells of Andaman jail, Rahul Gandhi cannot do it for even 12 hours,” Fadnavis told a news agency.

—India Legal Bureau