Rahul targets Modi on Rafale again, says 'stop shaking; be a man'

Rahul Gandhi Arvind Jain Congress chief Rahul Gandhi addressing a press conference | Arvind Jain

The verbal jousts between the BJP and Congress in general, and between Rahul Gandhi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in particular, over the contentious Rafale fighter deal don't seem like ending anytime soon.

Hours after he accused Modi of “hiding behind a 'woman'” on the debate in Parliament on the Rafale deal, Gandhi tweeted on Wednesday night that the prime minister should “stop shaking and be a man.”

Gandhi tweeted, “With all due respect Modi Ji, in our culture respect for women begins at home. Stop shaking. Be a man and answer my question: Did the Air Force and Defence Ministry object when you bypassed the original Rafale deal? Yes? Or No?”

Gandhi had made the claim of Modi hiding behind Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on the Rafale deal debate while he was speaking at a farmers' rally in Jaipur. Gandhi had claimed Modi had pleaded with Sitharaman to defend him as he “would not be able to defend himself”. Gandhi added that a “woman had spoken for 2.5 hours in Parliament” on the Rafale deal, but couldn't answer the Congress's simple questions.

Gandhi's charge of Modi hiding behind a woman had evoked outrage in several quarters. While BJP chief Amit Shah lauded Sitharaman's speech on the Rafale deal, The National Commission for Women (NCW) said it would send a notice to Gandhi over the comment.