Devendra Fadnavis' wife calls PM Modi 'father' of New India; Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson reacts

New Delhi: Amruta Fadnavis, the wife of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis, has called Prime Minister Narendra Modi the "father" of New India, adding that the country has two 'rashtra pita' (father of the nation). In a mock court interview (abhirup nyayalay) recently, Amruta was asked about her calling Modi as "rashtra pita". The interviewer asked her if Modi is the rashtra pita, then who is Mahatma Gandhi. 

"We have two 'rashtra pita'. Narendra Modi is the father of New India and Mahatma Gandhi is the father of the nation of earlier times," Amruta answered. 

Amruta, who is also a singer had also called PM the "Father of our Country" in 2019 while wishing him on his birthday.

"Wishing the Father of our Country @narendramodi ji a very Happy Birthday - who inspires us to work relentlessly towards the betterment of the society," she had tweeted.

Wishing the Father of our Country @narendramodi ji a very Happy Birthday - who inspires us to work relentlessly towards the betterment of the society ! #HappyBDayPMModiJi #HappyBdayPMModi #HappyBirthdayPM #happybirthdaynarendramodi pic.twitter.com/Ji2OMDmRSm — AMRUTA FADNAVIS (@fadnavis_amruta) September 17, 2019

Bapu would have long disowned the India of present times: Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson

The remarks, however, drew sharp criticism from Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi. 

"She and the RSS whose bidding she is obeying are most welcome to declare Modi as the Father of New India. In any case, Bapu would have long disowned the India of present times. The Maharashtra Assembly should officially adopt and pass the resolution to declare Modi as the Father of Manuvadi Hindu Rashtra Bharat," Tushar said. 

Maharashtra Congress chief Nana Patole also took to his official Twitter account and said that the "father of this country is only one and that is Mahatma Gandhi".

"The father of this country is only one and that is Mahatma Gandhi! No one else deserves that," he said in a tweet in Marathi.

या देशाचे राष्ट्रपिता एकच आहेत आणि ते म्हणजे महात्मा गांधी!
इतर कुणाची ती पात्रता नाही!

— Nana Patole (@NANA_PATOLE) December 21, 2022

Congress leader and former Maharashtra minister Yashomati Thakur also slammed Amrita over her remarks. 

"People following the BJP and RSS ideology keep trying to kill Gandhiji again and again. They keep doing such things as they are obsessed with changing history by repeating lies and maligning great people like Gandhiji," he said.