Mumbai, Aug 5 (PTI) The Congress on Wednesday said it did not intend to demean Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar through a now-deleted social media post referring to her as “gungi gudiya”, after the NCP said the opposition party had displayed “ideological bankruptcy”.

The post was being used for political mileage, the Congress said.

Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe said the post was made in the context of socialist leader Ram Manohar Lohia’s political description of former prime minister Indira Gandhi and was not directed at Pawar personally.

“The tweet was not meant to insult or belittle Sunetra Pawar. It was made in the context of a particular political situation and not as a personal remark. Unfortunately, some people are trying to heat up the atmosphere for political gains,” Londhe said.

The issue flared on Tuesday after the Maharashtra Congress posted a video on social media in which NCP leader Dhananjay Munde reportedly shielded Sunetra Pawar from a journalist’s question about the law and order situation in Beed district.

Pawar is the guardian minister of Beed district, where Munde’s close aide Walmik Karad is the prime accused in the murder of Massajog sarpanch Santosh Deshmukh.

Sapkal, in a post on X on Tuesday night, however, said the remark against Pawar was regrettable and a result of miscommunication.

The “gungi gudiya” (silent doll) remark drew a sharp backlash from her party.

Referring to the Beed press conference, Londhe alleged that everyone had seen how questions from journalists were not allowed and Sunetra Pawar was not permitted to answer them. He said the social media post was made in that context.

Londhe said the party deleted the post in view of the violent reactions it triggered and that Sapkal had also expressed regret on his social media handle, saying the post had been interpreted differently than intended.

Despite this, the BJP and its supporters were continuing to exploit the issue for political purposes, he alleged. He also accused the BJP of following an ideology that gives women a secondary status.

He further said that late NCP leader Ajit Pawar had always upheld the ideals of social reformers such as Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Shahu Maharaj, Mahatma Phule and Dr B R Ambedkar and respected women, adding that some of his party workers appeared to be imitating the BJP’s approach after NCP aligned with it.

Earlier in the day, Maharashtra NCP president Sunil Tatkare slammed the Congress over the reference.

“By making such remarks, the Congress has exposed its ideological bankruptcy. Merely expressing regret does not end the matter. At times, one must have the sense of what should and should not be said,” Tatkare said.

The Lok Sabha member further said only the principal speaker should address a press conference, in an apparent rap to his NCP colleague Dhananjay Munde, asserting that party leaders would act more responsibly in future.

“This should not have happened. Only the main person should speak, not those sitting beside them. Our colleagues will certainly act responsibly in such matters,” he said.

Tatkare said he would first understand the context in which the senior leader (Munde) spoke, but maintained that a press conference belongs to the main dignitary.

“I will understand in what context and for what reason Dhananjay Munde spoke. Ultimately, the press conference belongs to the main dignitary. It is fine to sit beside them, but participating in the press conference while sitting on the side is, in my opinion, not appropriate,” he said.

“A press conference is held in the name of the main person. They alone should interact with the media. That is the essence of such an interaction,” he said.

Tatkare said even when journalists direct questions to those seated beside him during his own press conferences, he insists that they be addressed to him. “This is the norm from both sides, and our colleagues will certainly behave more responsibly on such occasions in the future,” he added.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut defended the Congress, saying the remarks were not unparliamentary.

Talking to reporters in New Delhi, Raut said Pawar now holds a constitutional post. Even if she is new to government, politics runs in her family. The Congress’ remarks against her were over her silence on law and order in Beed district, of which she is the guardian minister, Raut said.

“Gungi gudiya is not an unparliamentary word,” he said, adding that one should know how to tolerate criticism and ensure that mistakes are not repeated in future.

Responding to a question about the Shiv Sena (UBT) “cosying up” to the Centre, Raut said, “Our alliance was with Atal ji (Vajpayee) and (L K) Advani’s BJP. It was not with this ‘tapori’ (rogue) BJP.” The Rajya Sabha member also backed former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh’s demand to book Mumbai ex-police chief Param Bir Singh in the Antilia bomb scare case.

Raut said Singh should have been arrested, but the National Investigation Agency gave him a clean chit. “If Anil Deshmukh was arrested, then why was Param Bir Singh not arrested?” he asked.

Raut also claimed that Singh was tasked with toppling the then Uddhav Thackeray government. PTI MR PR GK NR