Soon after a video showing journalist Navika Kumar using the offensive word against Rahul Gandhi went viral, Congress issued a warning against the media. The grand old party firmly stated
that Rahul is the leader of the opposition and using derogatory words for him is unacceptable. However, the ruling BJP took the chance and accused Congress of threatening media.
On September 28, Times Now journalist Navika Kumar was hosting a panel discussion named "Cong Comedy Of Errors" after Sidhu’s resignation. During the episode, she referred
to Rahul Gandhi as "bloody.” She soon realised that she used a highly inappropriate word on national television.
The video of the incident went viral and Kumar received the wrath of netizens. Furious users also demanded an apology from her.
Following this, she apologised on Twitter by official account of the media organisation. She claimed that she has been anchoring for thousands of years and has never made this error before,
but she made a mistake yesterday. She went on to say that it was accidental and that the word she used was meant to describe a political scenario rather than a specific person.
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"My intention was not to hurt anyone's sentiments,” she added.
Before Kumar’s apology, Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel took to Twitter and issued a warning to the media over recent remarks. “Listen...Rahul Gandhi is the Leader of the Opposition.
The use of derogatory words for him will not be tolerated by Congress. We respect media which plays the role of the fourth pillar of democracy. However, should cross the limit,” said Baghel.
“Political activities in Punjab are really worrying. We all can see what's going on there. Because Punjab is a border state, its stability is critical to national security,” said Patra in a media briefing.
“Amid ongoing political stir, one thing stands out: Rahul Gandhi's astounding failure, and the way the Congress has started targeting journalism and journalists to disguise his failure is sad and worrisome,” he concluded.