Aiyar's remark isn't surprising; it's Congress' culture: Amit Shah

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Chief Amit Shah on Thursday said he was not surprised by Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's 'low-born' remark against Prime Minister Narendra Modi as this was the culture of the Congress Party.

Shah took to Twitter and posted, "Neither shocked nor surprised by Mani Shankar Aiyar's referring to PM as 'Neech.' This is the culture of the Congress Party. People of Gujarat will punish anti-poor, anti-Dalit, anti-Tribal and anti-OBC Congress."

He added that in the Congress party, there was hatred since the beginning towards the oppressed, deprived and poor sections of the country.

"Today, when this class is developing, it is moving forward, then this hatred of the Congress is coming out as a rude language," he tweeted.

"Yamraj, Maut Ka Saudagar, Ravan, Gandi Nali Ka Keeda, Monkey, Rabies Victim, Virus, Bhasmasur, Gangu Teli, Goon. These are some words or phrases Congress has used for PM @narendramodi in the past. Not much has changed. We wish them well. We will continue to serve 125 crore Indians," he further said.

Shah's tweet came after Aiyar referred to Prime Minister Modi as a "neech aadmi" for appropriating Babasaheb Ambedkar into his election campaign for the imminent assembly polls in Gujarat.

Aiyar, while talking to ANI, said it was the first prime minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, who turned Dr Ambedkar's wish into reality and it was not correct to badmouth the Nehru-Gandhi family.

"This person is a 'neech aadmi' (low-minded). He is not civilised and in a situation like this, there is no need to practise such dirty politics," Aiyar said.

However, Aiyar later clarified his remark and said the word 'neech' holds different meanings, adding he would want to apologise for the wrong translation.

This is not the first time Aiyar has made a derogatory remark about the prime minister.

He had, in January 2014, before the Modi-wave took the nation by surprise, said "Modi would never become prime minister, but he was welcome to serve tea to Congressmen.