Sandeep Dikshit dubs Army chief 'sadak ka goonda', apologizes

NEW DELHI: Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit on Sunday offered an apology after his description of Army chief General Bipin Rawat as a "sadak ka goonda" (street thug) caused outrage. Dikshit came under attack from the Bharatiya Janata Party, which also asked the Congress to take action against the former MP. "I have reservations on a comment of the Army chief but I should have chosen appropriate words. I apologize," Dikshit, son of former Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, tweeted after BJP leaders and Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju slammed him. "What's wrong with Congress? How dare Congress call Indian Army chief as 'sadak ka gunda'!!" Rijiju tweeted. Dikshit told a journalist that it was understandable if the Pakistan Army chief used foul language but wondered why the Indian Army chief was giving statements like a "sadak ka goonda". General Rawat sparked a row when he defended a Major's decision to strap a civilian to the bonnet of his jeep in the Kashmir Valley.