Congress demands action against Noida DM over 'Pappu' post on Rahul Gandhi

NEW DELHI: Congress on Friday expressed outrage over an alleged inappropriate comment directed at the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, which was purportedly posted on the official X handle of the Gautam Budh Nagar district magistrate.
The party has demanded immediate action against the officer responsible for the post.
In response to the controversy, a statement was issued on the X handle of District Magistrate Manish Verma, claiming that some anti-social elements had misused his ID card and posted the offensive comment.
The statement further mentioned that legal action was being taken, with an FIR being registered and the cyber cell investigating the matter. A copy of the FIR was subsequently shared on the handle.

Jairam Ramesh, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications, criticised the incident, saying that it exemplifies the increasing politicisation of India's bureaucracy and non-political officials over the past decade.
He emphasised the ongoing efforts to suppress and undermine the civil service, which Sardar Patel once referred to as the "steel frame of India." Ramesh called for immediate action against the officer for violating rules and norms.

"This is not a new development; over the last 10 years, India's bureaucracy and other non-political officials have become increasingly politicised," Ramesh said on X.
"There is a lot of effort being made to suppress and render useless the civil service, which Sardar Patel once called the steel frame of India. Cases like this are the latest example of that effort," he said.
The controversial post, which was later deleted, was made in response to a clip shared by Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate, in which she discussed history's perception of Narendra Modi. The post from the district magistrate's handle said in Hindi, "You should think about yourself and your Pappu."

Shrinate shared a screenshot of the deleted post, highlighting the DM's responsibility for the entire district and the inappropriate language used to refer to Rahul Gandhi. She also pointed out the presence of "Sanghis" in administrative positions, accusing them of fanning hatred while holding constitutional posts.
"He is DM Noida, he is responsible for the entire district. His language and thoughts about the country's opposition leader Rahul Gandhi must be seen," she said.
"It is clear that the administrative staff is full of Sanghis -- and now they are fanning hatred by sitting on constitutional posts," she added.
Pawan Khera, head of Congress' media and publicity department, questioned whether IAS officers were now being ordered to make such political comments under BJP rule, tagging Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath and the home minister's office in his post.