BJP candidate Kangana Ranaut’s ‘beef-eating’ statement comes back to bite her amid Mandi Lok Sabha poll heat
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The Newz Radar
MANDI: Kangana Ranaut, Bollywood actor and BJP candidate from Mandi in Himachal Pradesh, is again on the target of Congress leaders, this time over an old statement wherein she acknowledged that “she had consumed beef”.
Known for having tryst with controversies every now and then, the Congress is targeting Kangana over a four-year-old interview in which she admits to having “consumed cow meat out of curiosity”. In Hinduism, eating cow meat is considered a sin. Vigilante Hindu groups have in recent years lynched several people for eating beef. The killings have taken place even on the suspicion of ferrying cows for slaughter.
In the interview, Kangana purportedly mentioned that her mother had advised her against consuming beef when she left her home town Mandi to pursue a career in the film industry. She said she “tried it once out of curiosity”, but later adopted a completely vegetarian diet, and that she identified herself as a devout Hindu.
The beef controversy was first raked up by a Congress leader in Maharashtra’s Gadchiroli, Vijay Wadettiwar, on Friday (April 5, 2024). He alleged that Kangana, who was now the BJP candidate for the Lok Sabha elections, had once said that “she liked and ate beef”. He further drew a controversial analogy involving a self-styled godman serving a life sentence for rape, suggesting that “such individuals might also seek political candidacy based on their criminal history”.
Reacting to the remark, a spokesperson of the Maharashtra BJP said it reflected the Congress’ “dirty culture”.
Himachal PWD Minister and Congress leader Vikramaditya Singh was fast to cash in on the controversy. In a post on Facebook, he wrote: “Himachal, also known as Devbhoomi, is the land of deities. It’s a matter of concern for us that people who have eaten cow meat are contesting elections from Himachal. It’s even against our culture and tradition.”
Vikramaditya’s mother Pratibha Singh is the sitting MP from Mandi and the Congress is likely to field her again. The PWD Minister had earlier targeted Kangana citing an old letter issued by outgoing BJP MP from Gurdaspur Sunny Deol, mentioning that he had deputed someone else to function in his absence in the constituency. Vikramaditya had alleged that like Deol, Kangana too would not be visible in Mandi after the elections and people would have to travel to Mumbai to get their works done. Hitting back, Kangana had alleged that Vikramaditya’s family too was an outsider in Mandi as they belonged to Rampur.
The Congress leaders are dredging up clips from Kangana’s old interviews to stir controversy, targeting the BJP for selecting her as their star campaigner and Mandi candidate. The Congress has also launched a social media campaign against her, questioning whether people would support a candidate who had consumed beef.
