Rahul Gandhi attacked the Narendra Modi government in the Congress rally over inflation and polarisation, saying that the BJP and RSS are spreading fear and hatred among the people and are dividing the country. He further said that Modi and his government are working only for a select few industrialists in place of common people.
The Congress party on Sunday mounted an attack on the Narendra Modi government over rising prices of essentials and polarisation in the country, accusing it of working for a select businesspersons instead of common people and of spreading fear and hatred.
Rahul Gandhi spearheaded the Congress offensive in a show of strenght in the 'Mehengai Par Halla Bol' rally at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan. He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of weakening the country by spreading fear and hatred which he said will benefit India's enemies
The Congress rally is the party's attempt to mount pressure on Centre right ahead of the assembly polls in several key states. It is launching an all-out attack on the BJP government over price rise, unemployment, and the inclusion of several essentials under the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
Addressing the rally, Rahul also said the Modi government is pressurising and undermining institutions such as the media, judiciary, and the Election Commission.
Rahul further alleged that the Modi government is creating two Indias, one of poors who canot fulfil any dream and the other of a few rich businesspersons who can fulfil any dream. He also alleged that alleged Modi was working 24 hours for benefitting two big industrialists — an apparent reference to Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani who the Congress party and Rahul have long accused to be in league with Modi.
Rahul said that the current issues like unemployment, inflation, and polarisation are weakening India and the Modi government is contributing to this weakening.
He said, "I want to ask 'do price rise, unemployment, hate strengthen the country'. They weakens the country and Narendra Modi and the BJP are working to weaken the country. The Congress unites the country, we remove hatred, fear. When hatred and fear is removed, the country progresses, we have shown this for so many years."
Rahul also accused the Modi government of being unable to provide employment and benefit only two big industrialists.
"The PM and the two industrialists were working for mutual benefit 24X7," said Rahul.
Rahul also contrasted the vision as well as the economic position of the country under the Congress and the BJP government.
Rahul said the Congress lifted 27 crore people out of poverty but in the last eight years Modi "pushed 23 crore" people back into poverty.
"The work we did in 10 years they destroyed it in eight years," said Rahul.
Rahul accused Modi of "finishing India's economic power, with unemployment touching a 40-year high".
Rahul also contrasted the Congress with the BJP, saying that while his party ideology stands for providing equal benefits to all especially the poor and the downtrodden, the BJP and Modi want to benefit big businessmen by dividing the country.
In his continued attack on the industrial class, Rahul also said the three 'black farm laws' were brought in not to help farmers, but to benefit a few industrialists.
Rahul in his speech at Ramlila Maidan also attacked Modi and the BJP government over the polarisation in the country, saying that they are working to spread hate and fear among the people and are dividing the country. He further said such acts would help India's enemies such as China.
He said, "Narendra Modi is taking India backwards. Narendra Modi ji is spreading hatred and fear. This will benefit the country's enemies, it will benefit China, it will benefit Pakistan but not India. The more hatred, anger and fear spread in India, the more it will be weakened.
"Hate is a form of fear. When we say hate is increasing in the country, to say in a different way, fear is increasing in the country — fear of the future, fear of inflation, fear of unemployment and because of this hatred is increasing. Due to hate, the country is divided and is weakened.
"BJP and RSS leaders divide country and deliberately spread fear. The question is whom do they do it for and why. Who is benefitted from this fear and hate? Tell me what benefits the poor, labourers and small traders have got from the Modi government? Two industrialists have benefitted from this fear and hate."
Besides Rahul, other senior Congress leaders such as Mallikarjun Kharge and Ashok Gehlot also addressed the Sunday's rally.
Kharge said the Congress party made all efforts to hold a debate on price rise in the Parliament and the government kept avoiding it. He said the government did agree for a debate after they fought from "Parliament to streets under Rahul Gandhi's leadership", but got only five hours to discuss it, of which the Congress was allocated just 28 minutes.
"GST has been increased on daily use items such as curd. Unemployment and prices are rising on one hand and on the other hand the rupee's value is going down vis-a-vis the dollar. I want to ask Modi ji what are you doing as unemployment, prices are rising and China is also attacking us. But he does not respond to these issues," Kharge said.
Gehlot called the BJP members "fascists".
"The people in the BJP are fascists, they only wear the mask of democracy," said Gehlot.
Prior to the rally, the Congress party on Sunday took a dig at the Centre on the issue of price rise, saying unemployment and inflation were "two brothers" of the Modi government.
Ahead of Sunday's 'Mehngai par halla bol' rally of the Congress party at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the rally was not being held to canvas for the 2024 polls, but to highlight the two "biggest challenges” of inflation and unemployment to the people.
"We had protested against this even on August 5. About 70 MPs were detained, including Rahul Gandhi. People from 12-13 states are coming and we want to send an effective message to the insensitive Modi government that people are suffering from this back-breaking inflation and unemployment and solutions should be found for them," said Ramesh.
(With PTI inputs)