Prayagraj: Congress leader and former state advisor of Doordarshan and Akashvani, Kishore Varshney, has condemned the objectionable and indecent remarks made by DD News senior anchor Ashok Srivastava against Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and has demanded his dismissal. By sending a letter to Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and Doordarshan Director and CEO Tony Joo, Varshney termed the incident as a pre-planned attack on democracy. He said that Srivastava used a public platform like Doordarshan to make alleged objectionable remarks against Gandhi and to defame him.

He said that government platforms run by taxpayers’ money should be protected from becoming tools of propaganda. How far criticism of opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, is justified on such platforms is a matter of concern. Srivastava, during a discussion on the prime-time show “Do-Took Live Debate”, had said about Gandhi that he is not even equal to the thousandth particle of the dust of Savarkar’s slippers.

Varshney said that in the Modi era, the dignity of constitutional institutions has not been preserved. The government needs such sycophantic supporters who lower the dignity of language and criticize opposition leaders including Gandhi. Although in this government, this is considered justified. There is a race in criticism as to who will outdo whom in the long package of 15 crores.