Sharmistha Mukherjee, daughter of former president Pranab Mukherjee, has come forward alleging online harassment from supporters of the Congress party. Mukherjee's criticism of the party and the Gandhi family's leadership has allegedly triggered a wave of vicious trolling on social media platforms, including comments against her father. In a letter, Mukherjee outlined the severity of the abuse and urged former party president Rahul Gandhi to uphold the principles of justice ("nyay") that he champions.
Speaking to news agency ANI, Mukherjee expressed her dismay, stating, "Ever since the book on my father came out... Congress social media had been viciously trolling me." She highlighted her concerns over the state of affairs within the Congress party, emphasising the need for a broader leadership beyond the Gandhi-Nehru family.
During the Jaipur Literature Festival, Mukherjee voiced her worries about the party's direction and stressed the importance of considering alternative leadership. "The face of Congress in the 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections led to a drastic defeat," she remarked, urging the party to introspect and reconsider its strategies, as per ANI.
Mukherjee said her candid remarks on the Congress needing a leadership overhaul have sparked intense backlash. "All hell broke loose. All kinds of abuses had been heaped upon me," she lamented, highlighting the personal attacks she has faced, including derogatory remarks about her father, Pranab Mukherjee, as quoted by ANI.
"The contention is as if Congress is a Zamindari of the Nehru-Gandhi family and they are like feudal lords who dole out positions to people without any consideration merit and my father also didn't deserve anything. He was just at the mercy of Gandhis and he became what he became," she remarked.
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In response to the relentless trolling, Mukherjee said she attempted to address the issue with prominent party leaders, including Jairam Ramesh, Supriya Shrinate, and Rahul Gandhi, via social media. However, her pleas for intervention went unanswered, prompting her to escalate the matter by penning an open letter to Rahul Gandhi and other senior party figures, she stated.
In her letter, Mukherjee outlined the severity of the abuse she endured, singling out a particular individual on social media for their reprehensible conduct. She demanded action against the perpetrator and urged Gandhi to uphold the principles of "nyay".
In her missive, Mukherjee called for tangible action to address the issue of online abuse, urging the party leadership to demonstrate their commitment to accountability. "Show that your promise of nyay is not just an empty election slogan," she implored, underscoring the importance of confronting such misconduct within the party ranks.
In a post on X, she also flagged abusive tweets urging action from the Delhi Police.