The Congress leader has stepped up his attack on the BJP government Rahul Gandhi alleged that the structures of Indian democracy are under “brutal attack” and that the country’s institutions are under full-scale assault.
The opposition leader, who is in London as part of a UK tour, told reporters in the British capital that talks are underway within the opposition to unite around an alternative vision for the country and that an “undercurrent of anger” has been tackled on key issues. Is going Such as unemployment, inflation, accumulation of wealth and violence against women.
The 52-year-old former Congress president referred to the Income Tax Department’s recent survey action against BBC offices in New Delhi and Mumbai as an example of “suppression of voices across the country”, a motivating factor behind his ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’. Was. ‘ – which he termed as an expression of voice against the ruling BJP’s attempt to silence the country.
“The visit has become necessary because the very fabric of our democracy is under brutal attack,” Gandhi told reporters at the India Insights event organized by the Indian Journalists’ Association (IJA) on Saturday evening.
“The media, institutional structures, judiciary, parliament are all under attack and we are finding it very difficult to make people’s voice heard through normal channels,” he alleged.
“BBC has come to know about it now, but it has been going on non-stop in India for the last nine years. It is well known that journalists are intimidated, attacked and threatened. Journalists who advocate for the government are rewarded. So, it’s part of a pattern and I wouldn’t expect anything different. If BBC stops writing against the government then everything will be normal. All cases will disappear,” he said.
Gandhi expressed regret that the democratic parts of the world, including the US and Europe, had failed to notice that “a large part of democracy has come undone”.
“BJP wants India to remain silent. They want it to be calm… because they want to be able to take what belongs to India and give it to their close friends. That is the idea, to distract the population and then hand over India’s wealth to three, four, five people,” he said.
Gandhi’s earlier remarks at Cambridge University that Indian democracy was under attack and that many politicians, including himself, were under surveillance, invited sharp reactions from the BJP, which blamed the country’s image on foreign soil after facing successive electoral setbacks. accused of spoiling.
Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur told reporters in Delhi, “We can understand their hatred towards the Prime Minister, but the conspiracy to defame the country with the help of foreign friends on foreign soil raises questions on the agenda of the Congress.” on Friday.
Thakur said that Gandhi knew about the electoral defeat of the Congress in the assembly polls and had resorted to making allegations from foreign soil.
Thakur said, “The Congress was once again defeated in the elections, but their bankruptcy became evident as they never missed an opportunity to defame India from foreign soil.”
Asked about the plans of the Congress and the opposition for the next general election, Gandhi on Saturday said the election battle is not just between political parties but also against institutions as there is “no level playing field” in Indian politics. ” Not there.
“Talks are on between the opposition parties, I know many of them. The basic idea that the RSS and the BJP need to be fought and defeated is deeply ingrained in the minds of the opposition. There’s no question about it,” he said.
“There are strategic issues that need to be discussed… But it is important to understand that the opposition in India is no longer fighting any political party. Now we are fighting the institutional structure of India; BJP and RSS who have captured almost all the institutions of India. Therefore, the idea of equal opportunity does not exist because the institutions are not neutral,” he said.
Gandhi also hit back at the government’s criticism that he had discredited the country on foreign soil during his lecture at Cambridge University earlier this week, where he raised the issue of the “assault” on Indian democracy for the first time.
He said: “I have never insulted my country, I am not interested in it, I will never do that. The BJP likes to twist what I say… The fact is that foreign The one who defames India on the go is the Prime Minister of India…says that a decade has passed and nothing has happened in the last 10 years – so what happened to all those people who worked in India, who worked in those 10 years built India? Isn’t he insulting them? And, he is doing it on foreign soil.” The Congress MP said that there are billions of dollars behind a certain narrative and pointed fingers at Adani Group founder and chairman Gautam Adani.
Gandhi said, “Mr. Adani seems to win every auction he participates in.”
“I am seeing with my own eyes what is happening in India. And I can see that Mr. Adani has gone from 609th richest man to 2nd richest man in three years. I can see that it has been rewarded across the board. I can see that he is allowed to dominate industries in every industry of the country,” he said, adding that the businessman has very good relations with the prime minister.
When asked about India-China relations, Gandhi said that India needed to be very careful of “hostile” and “aggressive” moves by the Chinese on the border and drew on his points from his Cambridge lectures about the need for global production. repeated. China for more democratic structures.
“The Congress party’s policy on China is very clear. We do not accept anyone to enter our territory and push and pull us. Doesn’t matter who they are. This is not acceptable to us. And what has happened is that the Chinese have entered our territory, killed our soldiers and the Prime Minister is denying it. That’s the problem?” he said.
Gandhi said that he supports it as far as India’s foreign policy is concerned. In response to a question, he said, ‘I have no major disagreement with it.
Regarding an invasion, he said, “We have already invaded. I mean, we have 2,000 square kilometers of territory which is in the hands of the PLA. And the Prime Minister himself has said that no one has entered India.” done. Not even an inch of land has been taken. And this has destroyed our negotiating position. Because our interlocutors are being asked what is the ruckus about? Your prime minister says no land has been taken . So that’s one aspect of it.” Gandhi is in London as part of a week-long visit to the UK.
He is also being hosted by the UK opposition Labor Party at an event in the House of Commons complex and will speak at the Chatham House think-tank in London on the Russia-Ukraine conflict and wider geopolitical issues before concluding his visit to the UK. will address.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)