Rahul calls Modi 'prime time minister', says he continued shoot hours after Pulwama news

In a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the “prime time minister” continued shooting for a film till even three hours after news of the Pulwama terror strike came in. There was an ocean of pain in the country’s hearts and in the homes of martyrs and he was smiling and doing a photoshoot in the waters, Gandhi said on Twitter with the hashtag ‘PhotoShootSarkar’.

“Even after three hours of the news of the 40 jawans being martyred in the Pulwama terror strike, the prime time minister continued with a film shooting,” the Congress president tweeted in Hindi. 

पुलवामा में 40 जवानों की शहादत की खबर के तीन घंटे बाद भी ‘प्राइम टाइम मिनिस्टर’ फिल्म शूटिंग करते रहे।

देश के दिल व शहीदों के घरों में दर्द का दरिया उमड़ा था और वे हँसते हुए दरिया में फोटोशूट पर थे।#PhotoShootSarkar pic.twitter.com/OMY7GezsZN

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) February 22, 2019

On Thursday, the Congress cited media reports to allege that Modi continued shooting for a film in the Corbett National Park on February 14 for “self propagation”, and stayed put till the evening despite the attack on a CRPF convoy in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district in the afternoon that day.

Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, addressing a press conference, launched an all-out attack on the government and the prime minister over the Pulwama terror strike.

In his hunger for power, the prime minister has forgotten "raj dharma" (duty of governance), he alleged. "The terror attack happened at 3:10 pm, but the prime minister was busy shooting for his promotional film till 6:40 pm. When the whole country was mourning the loss of lives of our jawans in the Pulwama attack in the afternoon, PM Modi was busy shooting for a film till the evening. Is there any PM in the world like this," Congress leader Randeep Surjewala said at a press conference. "The prime minister also knew about it, yet the PM, a person who claims himself to be a pseudo-nationalist, continues to shoot a film (for Discovery channel) for self-propagation in Corbett National Park in Ramnagar," he claimed.

He alleged that the prime minister continued to "enjoy boat rides" with the camera crew and later ensured that there is slogan shouting by BJP people in his favour there."The prime minister continues to eat chai, samosas at seven o' clock at government expense in a PWD guest house when every single Indian household didn't eat their food," the Congress spokesperson said.

On one hand, the country was picking up the "pieces of our martyrs", on the other hand the prime minister was doing his "propaganda and publicity", he claimed. "Can such conduct be expected from the prime minister of a country. The prime minister should have been chairing the cabinet committee on security immediately and should have taken action, instead of shooting films," he said.

Surjewala said that the Congress party had shown restraint as directed by party president Rahul Gandhi, but it was important to raise issues of such conduct that "insults martyrs".

"The Congress party and the entire nation stands united with our armed forces as also our government in every step that they take in tackling Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. We are determined in that resolve even today," he said.

The Congress leader said that questions must be asked about the gross intelligence failure of this government and on the "priorities of a prime minister who on a sensitive time like this has gone on a foreign tour to South Korea instead of tackling terrorism".