Union minister Vijay Goel criticises Congress for failing to condemn 'chaiwala' barb by party's youth wing

New Delhi: Union minister Vijay Goel on Sunday criticised Congress’ youth wing for a meme it had put out mocking Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “chaiwala” past, and said its parent party — the Congress — should have condemned it. Speaking to reporters after taking part in ‘Mann Ki Baat - Chai Ke Saath’ event in Delhi, Goel said at a time when the prime minister was trying to take India forward, the Congress’ youth wing was stooping down with its tweets and memes. [caption id=“attachment_3763081” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Vijay Goel. PTI[/caption] “Congress should have condemned it. Politicians should not stoop down as it would be difficult to recover from that level,” he said. On 21 November, the official Twitter handle of the Youth Congress online magazine ‘Yuva Desh’ had kicked up a row by mocking Modi’s “chaiwala” past and English-speaking skills through a photograph showing him in a conversation with British premier Theresa May and US President Donald Trump. The meme was removed soon after it was put out and Congress communications incharge Randeep Surjewala said on Twitter that Congress “strongly disapproves and rejects such humour through memes. Differences on policy and opinion aside, Congress culture imbibes respect for PM and all political opponents.” “There was no prime minister who had done so much work and initiated so many schemes, which is evident from Moody’s rating,” Goel said, adding that the saffron party will sweep the Assembly elections in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. “Along with the Modi government at the Centre, more BJP or NDA states should join to make India better and positive,” he said. When the BJP-led government talks about positivity and the prime minister educates people with his ‘Mann Ki Baat’ programmes, the opposition only engages in negativity, he added.