BJP's response on Kharge's letter to Modi example of intolerance: Chidambaram

New Delhi: On Saturday, Congress leader P Chidambaram criticised four BJP MPs from Karnataka for undermining AICC chief Mallikarjun Kharge's letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Odisha railway tragedy. Chidambaram said this was another example of the "absolute intolerance" of the saffron party to any criticism.

While responding to Kharge, BJP lawmakers wrote a letter that Chidambaram criticised for being "shallow on facts and hollow on arguments." Including former chief minister Sadananda Gowda, four BJP MPs from Karnataka had objected to Kharge's letter to Modi on the grounds that it was "high on rhetoric and low on facts." For someone in your position, "WhatsApp University" is not an acceptable source of information for letters to the prime minister. Tejaswi Surya, PC Mohan, S Muniswamy, and Gowda wrote a letter to WhatsApp's vice chancellor, suggesting that in his role, the latter may feel compelled to present false information as fact.

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In response to the BJP lawmakers' attitude, Chidambaram stated their reaction was more evidence of the "absolute intolerance of the BJP to any criticism." When asked about the letter by BJP MPs, Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said that Kharge is not only an elected Congress president but also the leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha and that "in an electoral parliamentary democracy like ours, when he writes to the Prime Minister on an issue as grave and serious as a rail accident which has resulted in the death of 288 Indians, the reply should come from the PM."—Inputs from Agencies