BHOPAL — The Congress has demanded the resignation of Kunwar Vijay Shah, a Minister in the Madhya Pradesh government, for making a “highly objectionable” comment about India’s senior and decorated Army officer, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi.
During an event in Raikunda village in Ambedkar Nagar (Mhow), Indore, on Monday, Minister Shah made a controversial statement, claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had sent a “sister” of those who had widowed Indian women in the Pahalgam attack.
His remark, which referenced the recent Indian military mission “Operation Sindoor,” drew applause from the audience.
Following the viral video capturing the Minister’s speech, the Congress has demanded action against the former and his resignation from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
State Congress President Jitu Patwari condemned Minister Shah’s remarks and urged the BJP to clarify its position regarding the controversy.
Patwari also shared a video of the Minister’s speech on social media, calling for accountability.
He argued that Minister Shah’s statement, which framed military decisions in a communal and gender-based narrative, could exacerbate tensions.
His remarks have sparked concerns about the use of political rhetoric to justify acts of retaliation under the guise of governance, Patwari said.
Commissioned in 1994 into the Army Signal Corps, Officer Sofiya Qureshi served in counter-insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir and the North-East.
This is not the first time Vijay Shah has courted controversy.
Before the 2013 Assembly elections, he made an inappropriate comment about the then Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s wife, Sadhna Singh, at a programme in Jhabua.
The controversy escalated, leading to Minister Shah’s resignation at the time.
In November 2023, Minister Shah expressed his desire to meet actress Vidya Balan, who was in Balaghat for a film shoot.
After she refused to meet him, Minister Shah allegedly disrupted the production through the Forest department.
The incident gained national attention, forcing the Minister and the State Forest department to retract their actions. –IANS
