Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Sunday faced widespread criticism for addressing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as ‘Pappu.’ While Naqvi earned netizens’ wrath for his unparliamentary language used in a tweet, many concluded that he was simply unfit to hold a public office.
Rahul Gandhi had indirectly termed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s monthly radio address Mann Ki Baat as an attempt to divert people’s attention from the pandemic. He had tweeted, “The only thing that matters is that you should end vaccine shortages. The rest all are excuses to divert people’s attention.” He had signed off his tweet by using hashtag #MannKiBaat.
Reacting to Gandhi’s tweet, Naqvi wrote, “When would Pappu get himself vaccinated? Or the only capacity of Pappu is to simply mislead people and create panic among them.”
Naqvi, a member of Prime Minister Modi’s union cabinet, addressing the leader of India’s largest opposition party as ‘Pappu’ did not go down well Twitterati as condemnation poured in.
One of the cheapest tweets. Unfit to hold any public office. https://t.co/nsWOUP7wKv
— Sanjay Yadav (@sanjayjyadav) June 27, 2021
A Cabinet Minister of India showing his dignity ???? https://t.co/WKQ0g4tk7V
— चंदाजीवी (नाइजीरिया वाले) (@sks_rbl8299) June 27, 2021
Check the language of our minister.
He is a public representative #shameful https://t.co/z7o6rbXWfY— TARUN KUMAR (@Tarun4uTarun) June 27, 2021
This is what they shd do to curry favor with Movid. What will happen to Movid&these guys when they loose power. They have literally behaved like third rate street goons with SG RG PG & even with other opposition. The day they loose power many will be baying for these goons blood https://t.co/MEsLSLF2sG
— RJ Speaks (@VD18231409) June 27, 2021
Gandhi has relentlessly exposed the Centre’s Narendra Modi government for its inept handling of the pandemic, which left hundreds of thousands of people dead across India. There are fears of the third wave of the pandemic and experts believe that the vaccination drive at war footing was India’s only hope to avoid another carnage in the future.