Rahul Gandhi.
Credit: PTI Photo
Mumbai: From poll-bound Maharashtra, the brother-sister duo - Rahul and Priyanka - launched a scathing attack at BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of Constitution, reservation and caste census saying that he was suffering from “memory loss” and is speaking “lies”.
While Rahul Gandhi, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, addressed rallies in Amravati and Chandrapur, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi addressed election meetings in Shirdi and Kolhapur.
“My sister (Priyanka Gandhi) told me that these days the Prime Minister is speaking about the same issue that I have been raising,” Rahul said.
“In the Parliament, I spoke… I told him that caste census would be done and 50 per cent cap on reservations would be removed (when the Congress-led I.N.D.I.A. comes to power)... however, (now) in the election rallies, he is saying that I am against reservations… very soon, he would say that I am against caste census,” said Gandhi.
“He is suffering from memory loss like the United States President,’’ Gandhi said recalling the incident when Joe Biden referred to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as Russian President Vladimir Putin.
“Modi is against caste-census. If not, they would have done it 5 to 7 years ago,” he said.
Priyanka, on the other hand, lashed out at Modi accusing him of lying on the issue of reservation and caste census.
She challenged Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah to announce publicly that a caste census would be conducted and the 50 per cent cap on reservation would be removed.
“Let they say from the public platform that my brother is against reservation… my brother (Rahul Gandhi) has travelled from Kanyakumari to Kashmir and Manipur to Mumbai… and you say that he is against reservation… he (during Bharat Jodo Yatra and Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra sought justice for all and pressed for caste census,” she lambasted.
Priyanka also pointed out that Modi in his election rallies is asking Rahul to take the name of Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray.
Addressing the question, Priyanka said: “Yes, our ideologies (Congress and Shiv Sena's) were different...Yes, our political thinking was different... But neither Balasaheb Thackeray nor any leader from the Congress and Rahul would tolerate the insult of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.”
On the attacks by the BJP and Modi that he was displaying a blank Constitution before the public, Rahul said, “Constitution is empty only for RSS workers and BJP. For us the constitution is the DNA of the country”
Gandhi accused Modi and the people of the BJP of silently killing the Constitution in closed rooms.
“When Adani, Amit Shah, and BJP members were sitting in a meeting to disrupt the Maharashtra government, the one that you have elected… were they protecting the Constitution? Today, the entire Maharashtra knows that that government was stolen because of Dharavi, as Modi wanted to give Dharavi's land to their friend Adani," Gandhi said.
Gandhi said nowhere in the Constitution is it written that governments can be toppled with “purchase” of MLAs like it was done in Maharashtra and waive off debt to the tune of Rs 16 lakh crore of top businessmen.
Assembly Elections 2024 | The Maharashtra Assembly polls will take place against the backdrop of a fractured political landscape in the western state where the Shiv Sena and NCP will be going up against the Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar factions, even as the BJP and Congress try to make their mark. Meanwhile, in Jharkhand, the JMM faces a new challenge after Hemant Soren's recent arrest and Champai, a longstanding party member, joining the BJP. The Haryana election resulted in a shock loss for Congress, which was looking to galvanize on the Lok Sabha poll performance, while J&K also saw the grand old party eventually stepping away from the cabinet, with Omar Abdullah's JKNC forming government. It remains to be seen if the upcoming polls help BJP cement its position further or provide a fillip to I.N.D.I.A. Check live updates and track the latest coverage, live news, in-depth opinions, and analyses only on Deccan Herald.
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