Under attack, Bihar Cong orders internal probe on AI video of PM’s mother

New Delhi: Facing a political firestorm, the Bihar Congress on Friday initiated an internal inquiry to identify and penalize those who authored and shared an AI-generated video on social media that appears to show characters resembling Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his late mother, Heeraben.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders characterised the clip as a “new low” in political discourse, saying it crossed ethical boundaries by mocking a deceased parent and disparaging motherhood itself.

“This party has become ‘Gaaliwadi’ instead of ‘Gandhiwadi.’ Far from remorse, Congress justified the abuse of the PM’s mother with lies,” declared BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla on X, calling the video “disgusting” and “shameful”.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju asserted that the Congress’s inability to learn “even after being rejected by the public” demonstrated its collapsed moral compass, forecasting continued electoral losses for the party.

“The Congress party is suffering from social prejudice in politics. Has such an infection spread that they created an AI video of the Prime Minister’s deceased mother, that too during Pitru Paksha? Such comments are an insult to our ancestors. The Congress has reached the pinnacle of shamelessness,” said Neeraj Kumar, JD-U MLC and chief spokesperson.

Congress leaders argued that the clip was intended as satire on campaign tactics rather than a personal attack. They questioned whether the BJP was suppressing dissent ahead of elections.

“It is the duty of parents to educate their children. She (PM Modi’s late mother) is only educating her child, and if the child thinks that it is disrespectful towards him, it is his headache,” said Congress leader Pawan Khera.

On Wednesday, the Bihar Pradesh Congress Committee posted the 36-second clip, marked “AI GENERATED”, depicting a character resembling Prime Minister Modi dreaming of his late mother.

In the clip, the mother scolds the PM for invoking her name for electoral gain and mocks the alleged “vote chori (theft of votes)” tactics.

BJP MP from Hamirpur, Anurag Thakur, described the AI video as an “insult” to Bihar’s cultural heritage. He linked the episode to earlier abusive slogans reportedly raised against Heeraben Modi during the Congress-RJD “Voter Adhikar Yatra” in Darbhanga.

The Bihar Police arrested Mohammad Rizvi alias Raja in late August for the alleged remarks against PM Modi and his late mother.

Thakur reiterated other BJP leaders’ statement that the Bihar electorate would deliver a “befitting reply” through the EVM to such “shameful” conduct.

Meanwhile, despite ordering an internal probe, the Congress aims to portray the BJP’s reaction as opportunistic victimhood, arguing that the video debate diverts attention from ground-level grievances in Bihar’s hinterlands.

Assembly elections are expected in Bihar later this year.

IANS