Nuh/Mahendragarh: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said his party will not let the “hatred” being spread by the BJP on the basis of religion, language, and caste win and appealed to the people of Haryana to oust the ruling party in the Assembly polls.
Gandhi was addressing a public meeting in Nuh that had witnessed violence last year after a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession was attacked by a mob, leading to the death of six people, including two home guards and a cleric.
The fight is between ‘mohabbat’ (love) and ‘nafrat’ (hatred). The Congress spreads love while the BJP spreads “hatred”, Gandhi said on the last day of campaigning for the October 5 Assembly polls.
“The most important thing is brotherhood. Wherever the BJP and RSS people go, they spread hatred. In whichever state they go, somewhere they talk about language, somewhere they talk about religion and somewhere they speak about caste.
“Hatred has to be ended. India is not a country of hatred, it is the country of ‘mohabbat’… it is the country of ‘mohabbat ki dukan’, not ‘nafrat ka bazaar’,” said Gandhi.
Gandhi, who is the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, said hatred will only weaken the country and spread sorrow and fear.
“We will not let this hatred win. Love, brotherhood and unity will win in the country… Love is the only antidote to hatred. Love spreads brotherhood and with love, the country progresses. We talk about love but they (BJP) spread hatred and try to break the country,” he said.
Holding a copy of the Constitution, Gandhi said it has protected the rights of the poor, farmers, and labourers but “the BJP and the RSS were hell-bent on attacking the Constitution.”
“The fight is about this. If the Constitution does not remain, then you, the poor, would not have anything. Your land, money, and water will vanish. These will go into the hands of the select 20-25 people,” he said.
Hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue of unemployment, Gandhi said Modi keeps making claims about development but he cannot make people understand how he took Haryana to the “top position in terms of unemployment”.
“Modi ji runs the government of ‘arabpatis’. He waived Rs 16 lakh crore of debt of 20-25 people,” he alleged and asked the gathering how much debt of farmers, labourers and the poor was waived by Modi.
Money is being taken out of the pockets of the common people, Gandhi said as he talked about the “rising” prices of fuel and cooking gas cylinders and the “higher” cost of private school education.
Gandhi attacked the BJP-RSS at another rally in Mahendragarh, accusing them of not believing in the Constitution and wanting to “destroy” it.
“This fight is a battle of ideology. On one side is the Congress and on the other side is the BJP and the RSS. We say that India should be run as per the Constitution,” he said.
But whatever the BJP does, it does so to “weaken” the Constitution.
“When the Congress is in power, it does not put pressure on the media as we want it to be independent and show the truth. But by pressurising and threatening the media, the BJP attacks the Constitution,” he said.
“When the Congress is in power, it ensures the independence of the Election Commission and other agencies. We want them to be the agencies of the country, and not of any party or an individual,” he said.
Referring to last year’s protest by wrestlers, most of whom were from Haryana, he said, “Everybody saw what the BJP did to them”.
“Their (BJP) one member was indulging in sexual harassment and they have nothing to do with that. It is also an attack on the Constitution because it says every woman should be protected.
The wrestlers, including Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and Bajrang Punia, demanded the resignation of former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and ex-BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh for allegedly harassing junior women wrestlers.
Gandhi also targeted Modi for not visiting Manipur that witnessed ethnic violence.
“Modi ji remained mum when Manipur was burning. For one and a half years, he did not go there and still hasn’t. This is Modi attacking the Constitution,” he said.
Alleging that the PM was working for a handful of industrialists, Gandhi said the money Modi and the BJP gave to ’25 arabpatis’, he would give the same to the poor people of the country.
“If the loans of Ambani and Adani can be waived then farmers’ loans can also be waived. If Ambani sells chips, Campa Cola, cellphones and gets their right price, then a farmer should also get the right price (for his produce),” Gandhi said, adding that if the Congress comes to power, it will ensure farmers get MSP and their debts are waived.
“Farmers do not want free gifts, they only want (protection of) their rights,” he asserted.
Gandhi asked the people to support the Congress in the elections and termed the small political parties as the “B, C, D teams” of the BJP.
“Oust the BJP from Haryana,” he asked the gathering.
He also spoke about poll promises of his party including Rs 2,000 per month to women, Rs 6,000 of social security pension and guaranteed MSP for crops.
Gandhi again raised the issue of several Haryana youths going to the US while adopting an illegal route after spending a huge sum of money in search of a better future, saying they were unable to get employment opportunities in their home state.
The counting of votes for the Assembly polls will take place on October 8.
