Kangana Ranaut holds roadshow in Mandi, attacks Cong over derogatory remarks

Actor Kangana Ranaut Friday launched a scathing attack on Congress over its leader’s derogatory remarks on her and Mandi from where she is contesting the Lok Sabha polls on BJP ticket.

Ranaut began her Lok Sabha election campaign here with a roadshow hailing Prime Minister Narendra Modi with ''Jai Shri Ram'' and asserting that the BJP's main agenda is development.

The roadshow witnessed a large number of people trying to get a glimpse of the Bollywood actor, a four-time National Award winner who was born in Mandi's Bhambla town. In her maiden election rally at Sarkaghat town, the actor, while referring to the derogatory comment of Congress leader on her and Mandi, said, “Jo betiyon aur behno ke bhaav lagate hai, wo aapke kabhi nahi ho sakte'' (those who fix rates of daughters and sisters can never be faithful to you).

Congress leaders Shrinate and H S Ahir kicked up a huge political row with derogatory comments on Ranaut and Mandi posted on their social media handles.

Mandi is named after Mandav Rishi and Prashar Rishi who did “tapasya” here. The biggest Shiv Ratri fair is celebrated here. It is unfortunate that those who know nothing about Mandi are making such statements, Ranaut said during the roadshow.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had said that he wants to finish ''Hindu Shakti'' while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is committed to protecting “Nari Shakti” till he is alive, she said.

''Development is BJP's main agenda and we will spare no effort to win the elections under the guidance of Prime Minister Modi,'' she said, adding that the ''people of Mandi will tell what is in their hearts''.

Attacking Congress for misleading and confusing people by saying that she would return to Mumbai after winning the elections, Ranaut asserted that she was “fortunate to return to her motherland to serve the people”.

''I will always be accessible to you, I am your daughter and sister and nobody can stop you from coming to me,'' she said.

Several times during her address, Ranaut switched to the local Mandeali dialect which struck a chord with the people. Ranaut mentioned the names of her family members and said that all the people of Sarkaghat are her family.

The actor said that her journey in the film industry was not smooth and she was constantly “bullied” for hailing from Himachal Pradesh and not speaking good English, but she always felt proud that she is from Mandi.

''I have constructed a small Devi temple in my village and have built a house in Manali. I had struggled and worked hard to carve a niche for myself,” Ranaut said.

''It is not that my father or husband is chief minister and I have joined politics,” she said in an oblique attack on sitting Congress MP Pratibha Singh and her son PWD Minister Vikramaditya Singh.

On Wednesday Vikramaditya Singh had shared a letter of Gurdaspur MP Sunny Deol authorising works of his constituency to someone and said that I pray to Lord Ram that such situation does not arise in Mandi Vikramaditya Singh had targeted Kangana by indirectly comparing her to Sunny Deol, another actor-politician in the BJP camp, who has been criticised for his absences from Parliament and his Lok Sabha constituency.

The Congress leader shared on social media a purported notice from Deol appointing a ''representative'' to attend meetings in his Gurdaspur constituency on his behalf.

''I pray to Lord Ram that such a situation does not arise in Mandi,'' he had said on Facebook, asking people of the constituency to think hard before casting their vote.

This was Ranaut's first public appearance in her constituency after getting the BJP ticket on March 24.

In October 2022, Ranaut had said she was open to contesting from Mandi if the BJP offered her a ticket.

At present, the Mandi Lok Sabha seat is being represented by HP Congress chief Pratibha Singh, who won the 2021 Lok Sabha bypolls. However, last week, Singh had announced that she would not contest the Lok Sabha elections as the situation was ''not favourable'' and that workers were disheartened. But after the announcement of Ranaut's name, she has left the decision to contest on the Congress High Command.

The election to four Lok Sabha seats of Shimla, Mandi, Hamirpur and Kangra would be held along with by-elections in six assembly seats in the last phase on June 1.

While the BJP has announced its candidates for the four Lok sabha and six assembly seats, the Congress has not announced its candidates so far.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)