After controversial remarks, Pragya Thakur opts for ‘silent’ penance

Ms. Thakur, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, said she felt it was now time for some “soul searching”.

Bhopal BJP candidate Pragya Singh Thakur shows her ink-marked finger after casting her vote, in Bhopal.

BJP’s Bhopal Lok Sabha seat candidate Pragya Singh Thakur, who recently kicked up a row with some of her remarks, on Monday apologised for it and said she is observing “silence” for 63 hours as a mark of penance.

Ms. Thakur, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, said she felt it was now time for some “soul searching”.

The BJP leader last week courted controversy by calling

Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse a “patriot”.

Prior to it, she claimed that the then

Maharashtra ATS chief Hemant Karkare was killed in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks due to her “curse”.

Taking a dim view of her remarks on Godse, the BJP said it did not agree with her.

Even

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he will never forgive Ms. Thakur for insulting Mahatma Gandhi.

An aide of Mr. Thakur told PTI that she began observing a ‘21 prahar maun’ (63 hours silence) from Monday morning.

Ms. Thakur, in a tweet, also apologised for her remarks.

“After the poll process, time has arrived for soul searching. During this period, if my words have hurt the patriots, I apologise for it. As per the decorum of public life and to repent, I am observing a 21-prahar silence and will undergo hard penance,” she said in a tweet in Hindi.

Following some of Ms. Thakur’s controversial statements, the Election Commission of India had imposed a 72-hour ban on her from campaigning in the Lok Sabha polls.