Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar on Thursday afternoon started a new war by calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi ‘neech’ and ill-mannered. While talking to media about the Ambedkar International Centre that was inaugurated by PM Modi earlier on Thursday, Aiyar said that there was no need to do cheap politics on the occasion. “Ye aadmi bahut neech kisam ka aadmi hai, is mein koi sabhyata nahi hai, aur aise mauke par is kisam ki gandi rajniti karne ki kya avashyakta hai?,” he said.

This remark came in response to PM Modi’s statement earlier in the day where he had hit out at Congress by saying that parties seeking votes in BR Ambedkar’s name tried to erase his contribution in nation building and did little to build the Ambedkar International Centre conceived 23 years ago. PM Modi had also attacked Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi by taking a jibe at his comment on being a Shiva devotee and said some parties talked more of Baba Bhole (Lord Shiva) than Babasaheb.

“Such was his incredible strength that when years after his demise efforts were made by such people to crush his philosophy, when efforts were made to erase his contribution towards nation-building, his ideals could not be wiped out from people’s memory,” he said.

The Prime Minister added that he won’t be wrong in saying that “more people are still influenced by his ideas than the family for which such efforts (to erase his contribution) were made”. “Then nothing happened for 23 years…when our government came, we not only laid its foundation (in April 2015), but are also dedicating it to the nation today,” he added.

PM Modi further said that the parties seeking votes in the name of BR Ambedkar were probably not even aware that the project was pending. “It is a different matter that they are thinking more of Baba Bhole than Babasaheb… even that is okay,” he added.

The Congress vice president recently evoked Lord Shiva in reply to the BJP’s criticism that his temple visits in Gujarat are an election gimmick.