Comparing Bihar with beedi is shameful, the BJP says

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Friday (September 5, 2025) slammed the Congress party for a since-deleted post by the latter’s Kerala unit on social media platform X, saying that the people of Bihar would give a befitting reply to the Congress and the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in the forthcoming Bihar Assembly election.

“The comparison of ‘B for beedi and B for Bihar’ by the Kerala Congress is not only shameful, but also a direct attack on the identity of Bihar and its people. No apology has yet been offered for the derogatory remark made against the late mother of the Prime Minister, and now an attack is being made directly on the identity of Bihar and its people,” former Union Minister and BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad said in a video message.

“Rahul Gandhi-ji, what are you doing? Does (RJD leader) Tejashwi Yadav not have the courage to condemn this derogatory statement by the Congress? Democracy runs on public decorum, but the Opposition’s deplorable politics is dragging them further down,” Mr. Prasad said.

“Bihar, which has shown the world the path of democracy, will give a befitting reply to the Congress and RJD, who repeatedly strike at its identity, by [the people] exercising their vote in a democratic manner in the upcoming Assembly elections. The people of Bihar know how to protect their honour and identity, and are fully prepared to respond to this,” he said.

Earlier at a press conference, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said the post reflected the negative thinking of the Congress “seen over many decades now”. “In fact, this has started manifesting itself in their day-to-day affairs. The frustration — that they are losing public support, the frustration that the Gandhi family is no more liked by the people of India — is reflecting in their actions,” Mr. Goyal said at a press conference.

“They (the Congress) first insulted Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s mother and now have insulted the people of Bihar…,” Mr. Goyal said.