Congress Compares Bihar With Bidis, Says Both Can't Be Considered 'Sin' Now

Indian National Congress' Kerala wing on Friday stirred controversy on social media after comparing Bihar to a Bidi. In a now-deleted post, the Congress unit took a dig at the latest Goods and Services Tax reform, which exempts bidis from "sin goods" and places it under 18% tax bracket. Meanwhile other sin goods are placed under 40% tax bracket.

The row comes ahead of the Bihar assembly elections for 243 seats, likely to be held in November.

"Bidis and Bihar starts with B. Cannot be considered a sin anymore," INC's Kerala wing wrote on X.

BJP Spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla lashed out at Congress, saying "Congress crosses a line again."

"After abusing PM Modi ji's mother now compares Bihar with Bidi ! Does Tejaswi Yadav endorse this? From Revanth Reddy to DMK To Congress- their hatred for Bihar is evident," he wrote on X.

Last week, a controversy erupted after an INDIA bloc supporter allegedly used abusive language against Modi and his late mother during Rahul Gandhi's ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ in poll-bound Bihar.

The supporter had screamed expletives into the microphone placed on a small podium erected by a Congress leader in Darbhanga on a day the Yatra had passed through the north Bihar district.

Though, the Congress-led INDIA bloc maintained that he was not a member of any of the constituent parties.

The accused, a 25 year-old local resident, was arrested a day after video clip of the incident went viral, but BJP continues to hit the streets on the issue and its workers exchange fisticuffs with Congress leaders at the Opposition party's state headquarters.