‘Modi is going senile’: Mevani refuses to apologise over remarks on the PM

Gujarat’s Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani has doubled down on his attack on Narendra Modi, saying on Tuesday that the Prime Minister should be “discarded” from India’s politics.

The newly elected Independent MLA to the Gujarat state assembly reiterated that Modi should retire from politics and “head to the Himalayas.” Mevani’s remarks, made during a television debate on Hindi news channel Aaj Tak last evening, are sparking strong reactions from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters.

“Modi is (running) out of content. He is becoming very boring,” Mevani had told the Hindi news channel. The youth leader was appearing with Patidar agitation leader Hardik Patel and Congress MLA and OBC leader Alpesh Thakore.

“He is going senile,” Mevani, elected from Gujarat’s Vadgam assembly seat, added.

After his remarks went viral, Mevani retorted in another interview to an English news channel that he wouldn’t apologise for making the statements, adding that everything was fine “when Modi was involved.”

Mevani said that Gujarat’s former CM Vijay Rupani, BJP President Amit Shah and PM Modi owed him an apology for alleging that his campaign was being funded by jihadis.

“Wasn’t that a personal attack against me?” Mevani asked, when questioned by the English news channel if he would apologise for making personal attacks against the Prime Minister.

He further said that he would call on India’s youth to appeal to the Prime Minister to retire from active politics.