CM Sai Demands Kharge Apology Over Remarks on PM Modi's Late Father
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
A political clash over the boundaries of acceptable speech erupted on Sunday, October 25, 2026, after Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai sharply condemned Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge for remarks made in Patna targeting the late father of Prime Minister Narendra Modi — demanding a public apology to the nation.
CM Sai's post, written in Hindi, pulled no punches: 'राजनीतिक हताशा में कांग्रेस अब भाषा की मर्यादा और भारतीय संस्करों की सीमाएं भी लांघने लगी है' — ('In political desperation, Congress has now begun crossing the limits of linguistic decency and Indian values.') He described Kharge's comment as 'despicable and undignified,' calling it a reflection of Congress's 'falling political thinking and ideological bankruptcy.'
Targeting a Deceased Parent — Where Sai Draws the Line
The sharpest charge in CM Sai's post is not just about the remark itself — it is about the target. Opposing a sitting Prime Minister is the ordinary currency of democracy. Directing that opposition at his deceased father is, Sai argues, something categorically different: proof, in his words, of 'sanskriarhinata' — a lack of cultural values — that the entire country can now witness.
Sai framed the incident as a pattern, not an aberration. 'Every time Congress has adopted such hateful language, the public has given them a befitting reply — and it will happen again this time,' he wrote. The warning carried an electoral undertone: that voters neither forget nor forgive this brand of politics.
Kharge in Patna — The Remark That Sparked the Furor
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, one of the most senior figures in Indian opposition politics and a veteran parliamentarian, was in Patna when the remarks attributed to him were made. The specific content of what Kharge said has not been independently detailed in the available record, and NationPress is not in a position to characterise the original statement beyond what CM Sai's post attributes to him.
What is clear is that the BJP — and specifically its Chhattisgarh chief minister — read it as a personal attack on PM Modi's family, the kind that triggers some of the loudest condemnations in Indian political culture, where invoking a rival's deceased relatives is considered a serious breach of norms.
A Recurring Fault Line in BJP-Congress Politics
Accusations of personal overreach are not new to India's two largest national parties. Across election cycles, leaders from both the BJP and Congress have periodically condemned remarks targeting opponents' families as crossing an acceptable line — and both sides have faced such charges at different moments. What tends to follow is a familiar cycle: condemnation, demands for apology, counter-accusations, and eventually an electoral verdict that each side reads as vindication.
CM Sai's closing demand is unambiguous: 'Kharge ji should publicly apologise to the country.' Whether that apology comes — and how Congress responds — will determine whether this episode fades into the noise of daily political combat or hardens into a sustained campaign flashpoint.
In Indian politics, attacks on family are rarely forgotten before the next ballot box opens.