The Congress party on Monday strongly criticised the BJP after one of its spokespersons from Kerala, Printu Mahadev, made a shocking remark against Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi during a live television debate. Mahadev had said in Malayalam that if Rahul Gandhi pursued his political ambitions, “a bullet will fall even on his chest.”
Sharing the video clip of the debate, Congress leader KC Venugopal said this was not just casual political talk but a direct death threat. “Disagreements in the political arena must be solved politically, within the constitutional framework. BJP leaders, however, are giving death threats to their political opponents on live TV. Surely, Rahul Gandhi ji’s vehement fight against the RSS-BJP ideology has rattled them,” he said.
The Congress described the remark as “cold, calculated and chilling” and wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah demanding immediate action. The party said such comments show how a toxic atmosphere of hate is being deliberately created, leaving Rahul Gandhi vulnerable to violence. “This is no slip of the tongue. It is a death threat against one of India’s foremost political leaders. If no action is taken, it will be seen as giving a licence to normalise violence against the opposition,” the party warned.
The letter also referred to past threats to Rahul Gandhi on social media and pointed out that both Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were assassinated. The Congress said the remark could not be dismissed lightly.
Meanwhile, Kerala Police registered a case against Printu Mahadev at the Peramangalam police station on the basis of a complaint from KPCC secretary Sreekumar C C. The FIR mentions provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita relating to provocation, insult with intent to cause breach of peace, and criminal intimidation.
Congress leaders said the incident raises serious questions. “Does the BJP endorse the politics of criminal intimidation and violence?” the party asked in a statement.
