The Bihar Congress has ignited a major controversy after sharing an AI-generated video on X that portrays a dreamlike interaction between a man resembling Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a woman depicted as his late mother, Heeraben Modi. The short 36-second video, explicitly marked as “AI GENERATED,” has quickly spread across social media, drawing widespread criticism. The BJP has strongly objected to the content, viewing it as an attempt to exploit the memory of the prime minister’s mother for political mileage in the run-up to the Bihar elections. Party leaders have described the video as deeply disrespectful and have demanded an immediate apology from Congress.
The video, which carried the caption “Maa appears in sahab’s dreams,” was released at a time when the political environment in Bihar was already charged. BJP leaders wasted no time in condemning it as a calculated insult meant to stir emotions before the polls. Radha Mohan Das Agrawal, a senior BJP MP, labelled the move as a new and unfortunate low in political discourse. He stressed that Prime Minister Modi has always drawn a clear boundary between his family and political life, and using his mother’s memory in such a manner not only disrespects him but also insults mothers across the country. Agrawal vowed to escalate the matter to the Election Commission, calling for accountability from the Congress.
The outrage did not stop there. BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla also attacked the Congress on X, accusing the party of crossing all limits with its tactics. He argued that instead of showing regret for earlier instances where the prime minister’s mother was verbally abused, the Congress had doubled down by resorting to deepfake technology. According to him, this move transformed the party from “Gandhiwadi” to what he derisively called “Gaaliwadi,” highlighting his view that the opposition has abandoned respectful politics for cheap mockery.
This episode is not occurring in isolation but adds to a series of recent controversies where the prime minister’s late mother has been invoked in political battles. Just weeks earlier, at the ‘Voter Adhikar Yatra’ in Darbhanga, Congress and RJD leaders faced backlash after abusive slogans allegedly targeting Modi and his deceased mother were chanted during the event. Prime Minister Modi himself had reacted strongly to that incident, describing it as unimaginable and an insult to all mothers, sisters, and daughters of the nation. He reiterated that his mother had never been involved in politics and should not be used as a tool for partisan attacks.
In the aftermath of the Darbhanga controversy, the NDA’s women’s wing in Bihar organised a five-hour bandh, arguing that the offensive slogans were not just an attack on Modi’s mother but a humiliation of women across the state. BJP leaders once again pressed for apologies, while Congress and RJD leaders distanced themselves by claiming that the remarks had come from unidentified individuals outside their control.
The release of this AI-generated video has now reignited those tensions, placing the Congress on the defensive and offering the BJP another opportunity to mobilise public sentiment around the issue. With the state elections approaching, the controversy is expected to deepen the already polarised political landscape, sharpening the personal tone of the campaign and raising broader questions about the ethical use of AI in political propaganda.
