Panaji: A social media post by senior BJP leader Narendra Sawaikar, allegedly targeting the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), sparked a political debate in the coastal state on Tuesday, with the Congress and AAP demanding an apology from the leader.
BJP Goa Vice President and former Member of Parliament Narendra Sawaikar on Tuesday posted on his social media pages: “Cockroaches with the termites! Save the nation!”
The post also carried a map of India being infested with cockroaches.
Reacting to the post, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee Working President Sunil Kawthankar, while addressing a press conference in Panaji, gave the BJP 24 hours to apologise over the “termites” remark.
Kawthankar said the BJP must stop branding those who criticise the Prime Minister or the government as “anti-national” or “terrorists”.
He asserted that people in a democracy have every right to question the government and its policies.
Kawthankar said the BJP is a political party and “not synonymous with the nation”, adding that criticism of the government should not be equated with being “anti-national”. He also alleged that the BJP was weakening democratic institutions.
AAP also joined the chorus in protesting against Sawaikar’s statement.
AAP Goa MLA Cruz Silva condemned the BJP Vice President’s “termites” remark against protesting students.
In a statement posted on his social media handles, Silva said that the remark by Sawaikar against protesting students was “shameful and unacceptable.”
