Ahmedabad: After the uproar over his controversial remarks describing people of Gujarat as “illiterate”, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday issued a public apology on social media platform X, expressing regret and stating that he had no intention of hurting sentiments.

The remarks by the Congress chief had triggered a massive backlash, with Gujarat Congress leaders struggling to contain the fallout from the statement just ahead of the local body elections in the state.

Issuing an apology on X, Kharge said, “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 of respect.”

It is learnt that the apology, which came days after the statement, was issued at the request of party leaders from Gujarat, who were left in a difficult position amid the ongoing poll season.

What Kharge said

Kharge made the controversial statement on April 5 during an election rally in Kerala. He said, “Don’t misguide the people of Kerala. They are very clever, they are educated. Modi ji, Vijay, you both can fool people who are illiterate in Gujarat or in other places, but you can’t fool Kerala people…”

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has strongly criticised Kharge since the remarks surfaced, questioned the timing of his apology. Gujarat BJP spokesperson Dr. Anil Patel said, “After the BJP’s strong reaction to the statement made by Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge, he has apologised. He is a senior leader and may have made this statement under pressure from Rahul Gandhi. He is an elder, but why didn’t he apologise when he made the statement?” DeshGujarat