Sushma hits at Chandy after Keralites trapped in Libya return home

War of words between Centre and Oommen Chandy after Prime Minister Narendra Modi likened Kerala to Somalia.

The war of words between Centre and Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy escalated after Prime Minister Narendra Modi likened the state to Somalia.

After 29 Indians, including 16 Keralites, returned from strife-torn Libya on Thursday, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj took to Twitter to attack Chandy.

She tweeted, “We evacuated thousands of Indians from Kerala from Iraq, Libya and Yemen. Who paid for them ”

Mr.Chandy - We evacuated thousands of Indians from Kerala from Iraq, Libya and Yemen. Who paid for them

— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) May 12, 2016

Mr.Chandy - You said 'Kerala paid for 29 Indians evacuated from Libya.'

— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) May 12, 2016

Mr.Chandy - You started this debate - as to Who paid Not me. We always did this because this is our pious duty towards our citizens.

— Sushma Swaraj (@SushmaSwaraj) May 12, 2016

Earlier in the day, Chandy flayed Modi for not withdrawing his ‘Somalia’ remarks and said he owes an apology, not silence.

In his Facebook post, Chandy said Modi had kept mum on the controversy and what Keralites want is not his silence, but an unconditional apology from the Prime Minister.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi left the election campaign rally without answering my questions. It could be due to the wide criticism he had received not only from the state, but also from Malayali community world over," Chandy said.

In a hard-hitting letter, Chandy had lambasted Modi recently for comparing Kerala to Somalia during his poll campaign rally here, saying he has insulted the state.

He had also requested Modi to show some "political decency" by withdrawing the statement as they are "baseless and contrary to ground realities.

"The people of Kerala, whose self-pride was wounded by the Prime Minister's statement, expected an unconditional apology from him and not his silence. But it didn't happen," he said adding that Keralites still hoped he would withdraw his 'Somalia' remark.

On Sunday, while addressing an election rally, Modi had compared the infant mortality rate among tribals in the state with that of African country Somalia, which triggered widespread criticism among political parties in Kerala.

Social media had also witnessed campaigns with hashtag #PoMoneModi (Go Off Modi) mocking at the Prime Minister over his comparison.