# BJP chief slams Congress over remarks on Biharis, demands apology

2026-11-08T10:56:57+00:00 | Politics | Indian Opinion Desk

Corroboration: 3 independent outlets

Bihar BJP president Sanjay Saraogi on Saturday accused the Congress of harbouring hostility towards Bihar and its people, reacting to remarks by Congress's Uttar Pradesh in-charge Rajendra Pal Gautam. Saraogi demanded an immediate apology, warning that voters would respond in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections. Gautam had allegedly said that Biharis were incapable of doing much on their own and simply read out scripts handed to them, in response to a statement by BJP national president Nitin Nabin. Congress leader Rajendra Pal Gautam on Saturday denied making derogatory remarks about Biharis, insisting he never used the word 'Bihari' and demanding that the complete video be heard before drawing conclusions. BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad and Union Minister Giriraj Singh also condemned the alleged remarks, demanding an apology from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. Singh warned that any attempt to humiliate the people of Bihar would have consequences.

## Indian Opinion Analysis

The three outlets cover the same political controversy but differ in the detail they lead with. Times of India and ABP Live frame the story around BJP's accusation against Congress, presenting Gautam's alleged remarks as fact. Times Now, by contrast, leads with Gautam's denial and his demand that the full video be heard, foregrounding the dispute over what was actually said. ABP Live reports the remarks as 'allegedly' made and includes the alleged content about stealing offerings and hurting religious sentiments, which the other two do not mention. The uniform element is that all three quote BJP leaders demanding an apology. The divergent framings mean a reader gets either a story about an insult or a story about a contested remark, the full video is the concrete item that could settle the difference.

## Coverage

Coverage: 3 sources, 3 neutral
- timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) <https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/congress-harbours-hostility-towards-bihar-saraogi/articleshow/135640718.cms>
  Leads with BJP accusation, gives only one side briefly
- abplive.com (neutral report) <https://news.abplive.com/cities/bihar-bjp-chief-sanjay-saraogi-slams-congress-over-rajendra-pal-gautam-s-remarks-demands-apology-1875171>
  Reports allegation and demand, adds detail on alleged remarks
- timesnownews.com (neutral report) <https://www.timesnownews.com/india/congress-rajendra-pal-gautam-denies-bihari-remark-on-bjp-chief-nitin-nabin-say-listen-to-full-video-article-156481782>
  Leads with Gautam's denial, includes full denials and BJP reactions

This brief was synthesised by AI from the 3 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.

Tags: Bihar, BJP, Congress, Nitin Nabin, Rajendra Pal Gautam, Sanjay Saraogi
Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/bjp-chief-slams-congress-over-remarks-on-biharis-demands-apology/
License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources.
Cite: https://indianopinion.org/bjp-chief-slams-congress-over-remarks-on-biharis-demands-apology/#story-in-brief

How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/
