Kharge slams Modi for not visiting Manipur, decision on Ram Temple invite 'very soon'

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday said he will “very soon” decide on whether to attend the Ram Temple consecration ceremony even as he attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his “photo sessions” at temple construction sites and Lakshadweep while skipping any visit to ethnic violence-hit Manipur.

Addressing a press conference here after unveiling the tagline 'Nyay Ka Haq Milne Tak' (Until We Get Justice) for Rahul Gandhi's 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra' (BJNY), Kharge also said that the passage of new labour codes, farm laws and criminal codes were “signs of a dictatorship” in the country.

Kharge said he has received an invitation from the temple trust for the consecration ceremony and “a decision will be taken at the earliest” on whether to travel to Ayodhya. Besides Kharge, former president Sonia Gandhi and Congress Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury have got invitations.

Asked about Himachal Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukku's remarks that he would go if he gets an invite, he said, “he has not got an invite and it is his personal view. If you have received an invite, you can go. It is about ‘personal astha’ (personal faith). If you have faith, you can go today, you can go tomorrow or the day after.”

Congress’s refusal to publicise its stand on the issue comes even as a section within the party and some allies have expressed apprehension over attending the ceremony as they believe that the BJP will be using it for its political benefits.

Kharge said the party was taking out the BJNY to reestablish the ideals of justice, liberty, equality and fraternity mentioned in the Preamble of the Constitution.

Targeting the Prime Minister, he referred to the yatra's starting point Manipur and said Modi has visited many places for photo sessions in new attire, whether in Lakshadweep for snorkelling or temple construction sites. "Why did not this 'mahapurush' visit the state where people were killed and women were raped?... If you can go to Lakshadweep to swim, can't you get to Manipur? " he said.

“Why are we taking this yatra? Because there is no other way. We tried to put our views in Parliament but the government did not give us an opportunity,” he said.

Criticising the passage of criminal and labour codes, he said, "These are the signs of dictatorship. The Modi government had repealed even the British era labour laws as also those passed after independence....the Modi government wants to make employees bonded labourers."

He also accused the BJP government of blatantly misusing the Enforcement Directorate, CBI and the Income Tax Department to arm-twist Opposition leaders. “There is a big dry clean factory run by Home Minister Amit Shah, where every tainted leader who joins the BJP comes out clean, pure white,” he said.

During the BJNY, he said, Rahul and the Congress will put forth these issues and also listen to their issues. He said Rahul will interact with civil society organisations while invitations will be extended to I.N.D.I.A partners.