Union Minister Prahlad Joshi on Thursday hit back at senior Congress leader Siddaramaiah over his remarks on Narendra Modi, saying people see the Prime Minister as "God". Joshi was reacting to Siddaramaiah's tweet in which the former Karnataka CM said "PM Modi is not God to bless anyone".
"We are not saying that PM Modi is God, people see him as God. Whatever they (Congress) have spoken against Modi ji, people have given them a befitting reply," ANI quoted Joshi as saying.
On Wednesday, while addressing a public meeting in Karnataka's Shiggaon, Siddaramaiah condemned BJP national president JP Nadda's statement about PM Modi's blessings on the poll-bound state.
Taking to Twitter, Siddaramaiah said, "I condemn the statement of @JPNadda about @narendramodi's blessings on Karnataka. Looks like he needs lessons on democracy."
"All states are equal and have same rights according to the constitution. There is no space for dictatorship in democracy. In democracy, people decide the fate of the candidates and the elected representatives can serve them. Narendra Modi is not God to bless anyone," he had said.
Congress also tweeted a video clip of Nadda's remarks, accusing him of "threatening" the voters and calling his comments a "blatant attack on democracy".
Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh tweeted a video clip of Nadda in which he can be heard saying, "Karnataka mein vikas ki ganga behti rahe esliye main kamal ke nishan par vote maangne aaya hoon. Karnataka mein vikas chalta rahe, nirantar chalta rahe, ye chunav ka mudda hai. Jo Modi ji ka aashirvaad hai usse kahin Karnataka vanchit na ho jaye esliye mera aapse nivedan hai ki aapne kamal ko jitana hai aur Karnataka ke vikas ko aage badhana hai (Vote for the lotus symbol to ensure the river of development continues to flow in Karnataka. Development continues in a constant manner in the state is an issue in the elections. So that the state is not devoid of Modi ji's blessings, I appeal to you to vote for the lotus symbol and take forward development)."
The 224-seat Karnataka Assembly will go to polls on May 10, and the votes will be counted on May 13.