‘Sting’ row: ‘Village idiot’ remark of Priyank adds fuel to battle of words with HDK

The ongoing battle of words between Union Minister and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy and Home Minister Priyank Kharge over “sting” operation investigation escalated on Thursday, with the latter using the expression “halli guggu” (village idiot) to refer to the former, leading to a strong backlash.

The Janata Dal (Secular) took up a social media campaign, hitting back at Mr. Kharge with the slogan “I too am Halli Guggu.” Earlier in the day, Mr. Kumaraswamy said that the comment disrespected the farming community and rural residents.

Mr. Kharge, on Wednesday, had asked if Mr. Kumaraswamy was a “village idiot”, in response to doubts expressed by Mr. Kumaraswamy on “sting” investigations. Questioning how a sensitive investigation could be “live-streamed”, Mr. Kharge had asked, “Are we running Bigg Boss? Can an investigation be live-streamed?” He went on to say that Mr. Kumaraswamy needed to stop acting like a “village idiot” and make “baseless allegations on a daily basis”.

Responding to Mr. Kharge’s remark, Mr. Kumaraswamy said, “The words do not affect me, but the Congress is insulting the farming community by using such an expression.” He demanded that Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge respond to his son’s comments.

Meanwhile, the BJP leaders jumped to Mr. Kumaraswamy’s defence. Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashok took to social media to remind Mr. Kharge of a famous song from Dr. Raj Kumar’s films that says “Halliayadarenu Shiva Dilliyadarenu Shiva” that seeks to deplore those trying to look down upon villagers. “If Dr. Raj Kumar was alive today, he would have told Mr. Priyank Kharge that villager is not an idiot. He is the real strength of the nation,” Mr. Ashok remarked.

This latest flare-up is part of a running political clash between the two leaders, the latest of which has been over the Bengaluru city police’s investigation into the alleged sting video pertaining to the former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.