Such language doesn't befit PM's office: Sachin Pilot on Modi's 'MMC' jibe at Congress

Jaipur, Mar 1 (PTI) Congress leader Sachin Pilot said on Sunday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks, describing the opposition party as "MMC or the Muslim League-Maoist Congress", were unfortunate, stressing that such language does not befit the top office he holds.

Talking to reporters here, Pilot said Modi's remarks, made at a rally in Ajmer on Saturday, were far removed from the truth and amounted to levelling "unparliamentary" allegations against a political party.

"The remarks appeared to be made keeping in view (upcoming) elections in states like West Bengal and Kerala. The prime minister is not talking about his 11-year report card from any platform and avoiding important issues like unemployment and farmers' concerns," he said.

Slamming the opposition party at the Ajmer rally, Modi said there was a time when INC stood for the Indian National Congress.

"The Indian National Congress no longer exists in that form. Today, it has become MMC -- the Muslim League-Maoist Congress," he said.

On Youth Congress workers staging a protest at the venue of the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi and their detention, Pilot said dissent is a democratic right and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government of attempting to suppress opposition voices.

"Detaining the protesters reflected an inability to tolerate disagreement," he said.

Commenting on the situation in the Middle-East in the wake of the US and Israel launching strikes against Iran and the latter retaliating, the former Rajasthan deputy chief minister said the government should make all efforts to ensure the safe return of the Indian citizens stranded in the region, including those from the desert state.

"The developments in the region are concerning and India should play an active role in efforts towards peace," he said, adding that a war is not in anyone's interest.

Referring to the Indo-US interim trade deal, Pilot claimed that pressure was being exerted on India and that farmers would suffer if markets were opened to American agricultural products at zero tariff while Indian goods faced higher duties.

"If heavily-subsidised American products enter Indian markets, it would severely impact domestic farmers," he said.

"India's markets have been opened to American products at zero tariff and we will pay an 18-per cent tariff. Previously, it was 3 per cent," the Congress leader said.

He said for the first time, a foreign leader or power is telling India where to buy oil and where not to.

"India is not a small island. We are a large country, how can the United States tell us that we cannot buy oil from Russia? That decision is ours. From whom will we buy and at what rate, that decision is ours, but it has been imposed on us," Pilot said.

He claimed that the government is compromised and added that the Congress and its allies will continue to protest against the trade deal. PTI SDA RC