New Delhi: Members of the Gujarati community staged a protest outside the Congress office on Wednesday, accusing party president Mallikarjun Kharge of insulting Gujaratis during a recent election campaign in Kerala.

The controversy erupted after Kharge, addressing a rally in Kerala’s Idukki district on Sunday, remarked that people of the state are “educated and clever” and cannot be misled, unlike those in Gujarat and some other regions whom he described as “illiterate”.

Protesters raised slogans such as “Apmaan ki rajneeti band karo” and “Gujarat na samman ma, Gujarati maidan ma”, expressing strong resentment over what they termed derogatory remarks against the community.

Leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), along with members of various Gujarati associations, participated in the demonstration and demanded an apology from the Congress leadership.

Similar demonstrations were also held across Gujarat and other parts of the country. Meanwhile, the Congress president also issued an apology over his remarks, stating, “Some remarks of mine in a recent election speech in Kerala are being deliberately misinterpreted. Even so, I express my sincere regret. It was never my intention to hurt the sentiments of the people of Gujarat, for whom I have always had and will continue to have the highest respect.”  DeshGujarat