News Analysis India

Tag: Mallikarjun Kharge

  • Fighting Narendra Modi and RSS, but don’t harbor hate for them in my heart: Rahul Gandhi

    Express News Service

    BHOPAL: “Though I’m battling Narendra Modi and RSS, I don’t harbour hate for them in my heart. Fear leads to hate, but I don’t have fear and so I don’t harbor hate in my heart,” former Congress national president Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday evening, while addressing a public gathering at Mhow in Indore (Madhya Pradesh), the birthplace of the founding father of country’s constitution Dr BR Ambedkar.

    “I’ll give you my example. My grandmother (Indira Gandhi) sustained 32 bullet wounds, my father (Rajiv Gandhi) was killed by a bomb blast and terrifying violence has been unleashed against me also. But I’ve lost fear and there is only love and no hate in my heart. Those who fear don’t love, while those who love don’t fear. Our country’s DNA isn’t made up of fear or hate, but only comprises love and compassion. I ask the PM, BJP, RSS and home minister Amit Shah to shed fear and hate from their hearts as they are damaging the country immensely,” Rahul said in his speech marking the Constitution Day at Dr BR Ambedkar’s birthplace.

    ALSO READ | Anatomy of Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination 

    Since 2015, November 26 is observed as Constitution Day to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution by the Constituent Assembly in 1949.

    The former Congress president was joined on the stage of the Constitution Day event by newly elected national Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, who administered the gathering the pledge to protect the Constitution till last breath.

    “When Dr BR Ambedkar presented the Constitution’s draft to the President, he had said about different political parties of different sects. What is being done by RSS and BJP now, had been foreseen by Dr Ambedkar then only. With deep foresight, he had cautioned that we need to be alert not only about our external enemies, but also about those from within the country. He had also said that if parties (political parties) put their sect above the country, we might lose our independence forever,” Kharge maintained.

    “Few people (RSS/BJP) want to pit Dr Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru and Sardar Patel against each other, as these people believe in Divide and Rule policy. We’ve to be alert about such people, which will happen when we all work to save democracy and conserve the country’s Constitution,” Kharge said.

    “Honouring the spirit of the founding fathers of our country and constitution, we must pledge to keep our caste, sect and religion aside and work unitedly for saving democracy, constitution and the country,” he maintained.

    Later, accusing PM Modi, BJP and RSS of fulfilling the dreams of a few billionaire industrialists (who are getting whatever they want), Rahul Gandhi said the PM has betrayed the youth of the country by not giving them jobs, instead turning them into labourers. “PM Modi lied to the country’s youths by asking them to fry pakodas, instead he wanted them to just do majdoori. The real meaning of Modi’s Startup India campaign means Start Majdoori.”

    He accused the RSS and BJP of backstabbing Mahatma Gandhi and Dr BR Ambedkar through their politics of fear, hate and violence. “They (RSS/BJP) once worshipped Godse (Nathuram Godse) only, but were later forced to bow before pictures of Dr Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi with folded hands. But the same forces are actually backstabbing the ideals of Gandhi and Ambedkar.”

    “They (the RSS and BJP) are placing their people in all institutions, spanning from Judiciary to Press and Defence Forces, to gag democratic voices and the constitution, but the Congress and people of the country will never allow them to succeed in it,” he stated emphatically.

    ALSO READ | OPINION: Why our Constitution matters

    While maintaining that the Constitution gave the country’s national flag real power, Rahul, raised the issue of the RSS not hoisting the national flag at its office for 52 years.

    The Bharat Jodo Yatra, which completed its 80th day and four day in MP, will travel in India’s cleanest city and MP’s saffron fort Indore for two more days before walking to Ujjain on November 29.

    ‘MP government’s conspiracy’

    The Bharat Jodo Yatra had reached Dr Ambedkar’s birthplace Mhow in Indore district on Saturday evening. As per eyewitnesses, there was a complete blackout twice in the span of 15 minutes at Dr BR Ambedkar’s Memorial and the entire Mhow town. The power supply, however, was restored after 15 minutes. Congress leaders, including ex-MP CM Digvijaya Singh said the blackout could be part of the state government’s conspiracy.

    ALSO READ | The future of the Indian Constitution

    The power department officials, however, made it clear that power had tripped due to technical problems, which was corrected shortly.

    BHOPAL: “Though I’m battling Narendra Modi and RSS, I don’t harbour hate for them in my heart. Fear leads to hate, but I don’t have fear and so I don’t harbor hate in my heart,” former Congress national president Rahul Gandhi said on Saturday evening, while addressing a public gathering at Mhow in Indore (Madhya Pradesh), the birthplace of the founding father of country’s constitution Dr BR Ambedkar.

    “I’ll give you my example. My grandmother (Indira Gandhi) sustained 32 bullet wounds, my father (Rajiv Gandhi) was killed by a bomb blast and terrifying violence has been unleashed against me also. But I’ve lost fear and there is only love and no hate in my heart. Those who fear don’t love, while those who love don’t fear. Our country’s DNA isn’t made up of fear or hate, but only comprises love and compassion. I ask the PM, BJP, RSS and home minister Amit Shah to shed fear and hate from their hearts as they are damaging the country immensely,” Rahul said in his speech marking the Constitution Day at Dr BR Ambedkar’s birthplace.

    ALSO READ | Anatomy of Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination 

    Since 2015, November 26 is observed as Constitution Day to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution by the Constituent Assembly in 1949.

    The former Congress president was joined on the stage of the Constitution Day event by newly elected national Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, who administered the gathering the pledge to protect the Constitution till last breath.

    “When Dr BR Ambedkar presented the Constitution’s draft to the President, he had said about different political parties of different sects. What is being done by RSS and BJP now, had been foreseen by Dr Ambedkar then only. With deep foresight, he had cautioned that we need to be alert not only about our external enemies, but also about those from within the country. He had also said that if parties (political parties) put their sect above the country, we might lose our independence forever,” Kharge maintained.

    “Few people (RSS/BJP) want to pit Dr Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi, Nehru and Sardar Patel against each other, as these people believe in Divide and Rule policy. We’ve to be alert about such people, which will happen when we all work to save democracy and conserve the country’s Constitution,” Kharge said.

    “Honouring the spirit of the founding fathers of our country and constitution, we must pledge to keep our caste, sect and religion aside and work unitedly for saving democracy, constitution and the country,” he maintained.

    Later, accusing PM Modi, BJP and RSS of fulfilling the dreams of a few billionaire industrialists (who are getting whatever they want), Rahul Gandhi said the PM has betrayed the youth of the country by not giving them jobs, instead turning them into labourers. “PM Modi lied to the country’s youths by asking them to fry pakodas, instead he wanted them to just do majdoori. The real meaning of Modi’s Startup India campaign means Start Majdoori.”

    He accused the RSS and BJP of backstabbing Mahatma Gandhi and Dr BR Ambedkar through their politics of fear, hate and violence. “They (RSS/BJP) once worshipped Godse (Nathuram Godse) only, but were later forced to bow before pictures of Dr Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi with folded hands. But the same forces are actually backstabbing the ideals of Gandhi and Ambedkar.”

    “They (the RSS and BJP) are placing their people in all institutions, spanning from Judiciary to Press and Defence Forces, to gag democratic voices and the constitution, but the Congress and people of the country will never allow them to succeed in it,” he stated emphatically.

    ALSO READ | OPINION: Why our Constitution matters

    While maintaining that the Constitution gave the country’s national flag real power, Rahul, raised the issue of the RSS not hoisting the national flag at its office for 52 years.

    The Bharat Jodo Yatra, which completed its 80th day and four day in MP, will travel in India’s cleanest city and MP’s saffron fort Indore for two more days before walking to Ujjain on November 29.

    ‘MP government’s conspiracy’

    The Bharat Jodo Yatra had reached Dr Ambedkar’s birthplace Mhow in Indore district on Saturday evening. As per eyewitnesses, there was a complete blackout twice in the span of 15 minutes at Dr BR Ambedkar’s Memorial and the entire Mhow town. The power supply, however, was restored after 15 minutes. Congress leaders, including ex-MP CM Digvijaya Singh said the blackout could be part of the state government’s conspiracy.

    ALSO READ | The future of the Indian Constitution

    The power department officials, however, made it clear that power had tripped due to technical problems, which was corrected shortly.

  • Assam-Meghalaya border violence: Kharge says BJP’s NEDA failed Northeast 

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: A day after the violence at the Assam-Meghalaya border, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday alleged that the BJP’s North-East Democratic Alliance has failed the Northeast and called on Home Minister Amit Shah to resolve the border dispute between the two states.

    Six people, including a forest guard, were killed in violence at the disputed Assam-Meghalaya border in the early hours of Tuesday after a truck allegedly laden with illegally felled timber was intercepted by forest guards from Assam.

    “Deeply saddened by the unfortunate incident at the Assam-Meghalaya border. 6 precious lives were lost,” Kharge said in a tweet.

    Deeply saddened by the unfortunate incident at the Assam-Meghalaya border. 6 precious lives were lost.BJP’s NEDA has failed North East. It is high time Union Home Minister resolves the border dispute between two states before things turn more hostile.Let there be peace.
    — Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) November 23, 2022
    “BJP’s NEDA has failed North East. It is high time Union Home Minister resolves the border dispute between two states before things turn more hostile,” the Congress president said.

    Let there be peace, he added. NEDA is a BJP-led political coalition with the regional parties of the region.

    In a tweet tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Shah and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Sarma, Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma, whose party is an ally of the BJP, had complained that the Assam Police and forest guards “entered Meghalaya and resorted to unprovoked firing”.

    Assam Police officials, however, asserted that the truck was intercepted in the West Karbi Anglong district of the state by a forest department team and a mob from Meghalaya had later attacked the forest guards and policemen from the state, which led to firing by the Assam side to bring the situation under control.

    NEW DELHI: A day after the violence at the Assam-Meghalaya border, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday alleged that the BJP’s North-East Democratic Alliance has failed the Northeast and called on Home Minister Amit Shah to resolve the border dispute between the two states.

    Six people, including a forest guard, were killed in violence at the disputed Assam-Meghalaya border in the early hours of Tuesday after a truck allegedly laden with illegally felled timber was intercepted by forest guards from Assam.

    “Deeply saddened by the unfortunate incident at the Assam-Meghalaya border. 6 precious lives were lost,” Kharge said in a tweet.

    Deeply saddened by the unfortunate incident at the Assam-Meghalaya border. 6 precious lives were lost.
    BJP’s NEDA has failed North East. It is high time Union Home Minister resolves the border dispute between two states before things turn more hostile.
    Let there be peace.
    — Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) November 23, 2022
    “BJP’s NEDA has failed North East. It is high time Union Home Minister resolves the border dispute between two states before things turn more hostile,” the Congress president said.

    Let there be peace, he added. NEDA is a BJP-led political coalition with the regional parties of the region.

    In a tweet tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Shah and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Sarma, Meghalaya CM Conrad Sangma, whose party is an ally of the BJP, had complained that the Assam Police and forest guards “entered Meghalaya and resorted to unprovoked firing”.

    Assam Police officials, however, asserted that the truck was intercepted in the West Karbi Anglong district of the state by a forest department team and a mob from Meghalaya had later attacked the forest guards and policemen from the state, which led to firing by the Assam side to bring the situation under control.

  • Gujarat polls: Congress president Kharge to campaign from Nov 26

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will campaign in Gujarat from November 26 to 28, sources close to him said here.

    Kharge will address a public meeting in Ahmedabad on November 26 and is likely to address a press conference the next day, they said.

    He will address a public meeting in Indore after participating in the Bharat Jodo Yatra with Rahul Gandhi on November 27. The yatra enters Madhya Pradesh on November 23.

    Kharge will address another public meeting near Gandhinagar on November 28.

    The Gujarat assembly elections will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5. Results will be declared on December 8.

    Other details of Kharge’s poll meetings are being worked out, the sources said.

    The new Congress president, who took over from Sonia Gandhi recently, had earlier addressed public meetings in Himachal Pradesh, where assembly elections were held on November 12.ALSO READ | Bharuch: Congress’ Ahmed Patel’s name still holds sway despite AAP factor

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge will campaign in Gujarat from November 26 to 28, sources close to him said here.

    Kharge will address a public meeting in Ahmedabad on November 26 and is likely to address a press conference the next day, they said.

    He will address a public meeting in Indore after participating in the Bharat Jodo Yatra with Rahul Gandhi on November 27. The yatra enters Madhya Pradesh on November 23.

    Kharge will address another public meeting near Gandhinagar on November 28.

    The Gujarat assembly elections will be held in two phases on December 1 and 5. Results will be declared on December 8.

    Other details of Kharge’s poll meetings are being worked out, the sources said.

    The new Congress president, who took over from Sonia Gandhi recently, had earlier addressed public meetings in Himachal Pradesh, where assembly elections were held on November 12.ALSO READ | Bharuch: Congress’ Ahmed Patel’s name still holds sway despite AAP factor

  • New Congress president Kharge meets party workers for first time after taking charge

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday met party workers and members of the public for the first time after he took charge last month.

    Party workers queued up outside the AICC headquarters here since morning for the meeting and the new party president met them in his office one by one.

    Kharge had taken charge as Congress president on October 26 in the presence of former party chief Sonia Gandhi.

    He was elected as the new Congress president on November 19 after he defeated Shashi Tharoor in a direct contest.

    The party veteran had declared soon after his election that every worker and leader was equal to him and he would reach out to all to help strengthen the organisation.

    Kharge is the first non-Gandhi to assume the charge of Congress chief in 24 years. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have headed the grand old party in the past.

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday met party workers and members of the public for the first time after he took charge last month.

    Party workers queued up outside the AICC headquarters here since morning for the meeting and the new party president met them in his office one by one.

    Kharge had taken charge as Congress president on October 26 in the presence of former party chief Sonia Gandhi.

    He was elected as the new Congress president on November 19 after he defeated Shashi Tharoor in a direct contest.

    The party veteran had declared soon after his election that every worker and leader was equal to him and he would reach out to all to help strengthen the organisation.

    Kharge is the first non-Gandhi to assume the charge of Congress chief in 24 years. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have headed the grand old party in the past.

  • Power games: The mysterious case of Mulayam family’s assets

    Express News Service

    Legal BattleThe mysterious case of Mulayam family’s assets

    A case of disproportionate assets filed in 2005 by Congress-linked lawyer Vishwanath Chaturvedi against Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, his sons Akhilesh and Prateek, and daughter-in-law Dimple Yadav has taken so many twists and turns and got linked to so many prominent personalities and events that a whole book could be written on it. The case is again coming up for hearing in the Supreme Court tomorrow. Chaturvedi’s petition had sought the prosecution of Mulayam and his family under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for amassing assets more than their known source of income. The Supreme Court found merit in his complaint and ordered a CBI enquiry in 2007. The CBI started the enquiry. But in 2008, the then Congress-led UPA government reached the brink of collapse with the Left parties deciding to withdraw support on the issue of the nuclear deal with the US.

    The government survived with the one-time support of Mulayam’s 39 MPs. Not many were surprised when the CBI approached the SC the same year (2008) seeking to withdraw the case against Mulayam and family. Chaturvedi opposed the CBI move and the case continued. Meanwhile, Mulayam had filed a petition seeking review of the SC order that started the CBI probe. The court passed an order in 2012 on this review petition in which it dropped Dimple’s name but allowed the CBI to continue its investigation against the other three, namely, Mulayam, Akhilesh and Prateek Yadav. In 2013, the Congress-led Union government once again needed the support of Mulayam’s MPs to pass the National Food Security Bill.

    A public statement was made by the then CBI chief Ranjit Sinha that the agency was going to file a closure report in the SC in the Mulayam family assets case. The closure report reportedly never reached the court but reports started appearing in the media that the case was closed. Chaturvedi wrote to the CBI asking for a copy of the closure report. But he was never given one. The matter lingered and finally, in 2019, Chaturvedi once again approached the SC seeking direction to the CBI to provide him with the closure report. The court issued a notice to the agency. The CBI has reportedly informed the apex court that it has closed the case and given its report to the Central Vigilance Commission. Chaturvedi filed an RTI application with the CVC. The CVC replied saying it has received no closure report from the CBI in the said case. Armed with the CVC reply, Chaturvedi once again knocked at SC’s doors. The matter is scheduled for a hearing tomorrow.

    Party NotesKharge’s indecisiveness raises eyebrows in party

    Newly appointed Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s failure to act against indiscipline has raised many eyebrows within the party. Congress leaders were surprised by a public statement by their data analytics department chief Praveen Chakravarty against the party’s promise to bring back the old pension scheme. The two Congress-ruled states have implemented the scheme and it forms part of the party’s election manifesto in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. The leadership’s silence led to media reports indicating division where none exists. Sources said party leaders expected the new president to put a lid on such reports and a word of caution for the functionary. Kharge has also come in for criticism for his inaction over the Rajasthan rebellion. The last major task he was given by the party to handle before his election was to oversee a transition in Rajasthan.

    The shoddy manner in which he and the other central representative, Ajay Maken, were treated by chief minister Ashok Gehlot and his loyalist ministers and MLAs is all part of well-recorded history. The humiliation suffered by the two was such that Kharge told the media that in his long career in the Congress, he had not seen such disregard for the party president’s wishes. The same loyalists of Gehlot who had kept the ministers and MLAs away from Kharge and Maken were given charge of handling the Rajasthan leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. Kharge and Maken had recommended action against these leaders for revolting against the party leadership. But Kharge has not acted as a president on what he had recommended as a central emissary earlier. A miffed Maken has refused to work in Rajasthan.

    Legal Battle
    The mysterious case of Mulayam family’s assets

    A case of disproportionate assets filed in 2005 by Congress-linked lawyer Vishwanath Chaturvedi against Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, his sons Akhilesh and Prateek, and daughter-in-law Dimple Yadav has taken so many twists and turns and got linked to so many prominent personalities and events that a whole book could be written on it. The case is again coming up for hearing in the Supreme Court tomorrow. Chaturvedi’s petition had sought the prosecution of Mulayam and his family under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 for amassing assets more than their known source of income. The Supreme Court found merit in his complaint and ordered a CBI enquiry in 2007. The CBI started the enquiry. But in 2008, the then Congress-led UPA government reached the brink of collapse with the Left parties deciding to withdraw support on the issue of the nuclear deal with the US.

    The government survived with the one-time support of Mulayam’s 39 MPs. Not many were surprised when the CBI approached the SC the same year (2008) seeking to withdraw the case against Mulayam and family. Chaturvedi opposed the CBI move and the case continued. Meanwhile, Mulayam had filed a petition seeking review of the SC order that started the CBI probe. The court passed an order in 2012 on this review petition in which it dropped Dimple’s name but allowed the CBI to continue its investigation against the other three, namely, Mulayam, Akhilesh and Prateek Yadav. In 2013, the Congress-led Union government once again needed the support of Mulayam’s MPs to pass the National Food Security Bill.

    A public statement was made by the then CBI chief Ranjit Sinha that the agency was going to file a closure report in the SC in the Mulayam family assets case. The closure report reportedly never reached the court but reports started appearing in the media that the case was closed. Chaturvedi wrote to the CBI asking for a copy of the closure report. But he was never given one. The matter lingered and finally, in 2019, Chaturvedi once again approached the SC seeking direction to the CBI to provide him with the closure report. The court issued a notice to the agency. The CBI has reportedly informed the apex court that it has closed the case and given its report to the Central Vigilance Commission. Chaturvedi filed an RTI application with the CVC. The CVC replied saying it has received no closure report from the CBI in the said case. Armed with the CVC reply, Chaturvedi once again knocked at SC’s doors. The matter is scheduled for a hearing tomorrow.

    Party Notes
    Kharge’s indecisiveness raises eyebrows in party

    Newly appointed Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s failure to act against indiscipline has raised many eyebrows within the party. Congress leaders were surprised by a public statement by their data analytics department chief Praveen Chakravarty against the party’s promise to bring back the old pension scheme. The two Congress-ruled states have implemented the scheme and it forms part of the party’s election manifesto in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat. The leadership’s silence led to media reports indicating division where none exists. Sources said party leaders expected the new president to put a lid on such reports and a word of caution for the functionary. Kharge has also come in for criticism for his inaction over the Rajasthan rebellion. The last major task he was given by the party to handle before his election was to oversee a transition in Rajasthan.

    The shoddy manner in which he and the other central representative, Ajay Maken, were treated by chief minister Ashok Gehlot and his loyalist ministers and MLAs is all part of well-recorded history. The humiliation suffered by the two was such that Kharge told the media that in his long career in the Congress, he had not seen such disregard for the party president’s wishes. The same loyalists of Gehlot who had kept the ministers and MLAs away from Kharge and Maken were given charge of handling the Rajasthan leg of Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. Kharge and Maken had recommended action against these leaders for revolting against the party leadership. But Kharge has not acted as a president on what he had recommended as a central emissary earlier. A miffed Maken has refused to work in Rajasthan.

  • BJP cannot fool people of Himachal with its ‘jumlas’: Mallikarjun Kharge at election rally

    By PTI

    BANUTI: Addressing his first public meeting in the Himachal Pradesh assembly elections, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday trained his gun on the BJP and said it may have fooled people across the country with its “jumlas” but cannot do so in the hill state.

    “People here are educated, understand everything and take a considered decision (in voting). The BJP may have been able to fool people all over the country with its jumlas (rhetoric) of Rs 15 lakh in bank accounts and jobs, but it cannot do so here,” Kharge said.

    Kharge, who was elected Congress president recently, arrived in Himachal Pradesh Tuesday evening and addressed his first public meeting in Banuti in support of party candidate from the Shimla Rural assembly constituency Vikramaditya Singh on Wednesday.

    The Congress is seeking to wrest power from the BJP in the hill state, where the Congress and the BJP have governed alternately for the past many decades.

    Polling in Himachal Pradesh will be held on November 12 and the counting of votes will be taken up on December 8.

    Kharge said the Congress would fulfil all its promises made in the manifesto and the restoration of the old pension scheme would be the first decision of its government, if elected.

    “As far as the old pension scheme is concerned, it will be implemented first. This is our promise and if given a chance this will be the first thing to be done,” he said.

    Restoration of the old pension scheme, 300 units of free power, a Rs 680-crore StartUp fund, one lakh jobs and Rs 1,500 per month for women aged between 18 and 60 years are among the promises the Congress has made in its manifesto for the Himachal Pradesh polls.

    The Congress president alleged that the BJP wins elections by making false promises and spreading lies.

    “Why do you speak untruth? Speak truth and then seek votes. You also said you will provide 2 crore jobs every year and had you fulfilled your promise, there would have been 18 crore jobs by now and the youth would not have been unemployed,” he said, targeting the BJP.

    Donning a Himachali cap, he said he comes from south India but will speak in Hindustani.

    Accusing the BJP of not practising internal democracy Kharge said he was elected as the Congress president and everyone knew how his election was held, but no one knew about J P Nadda’s election as the BJP president.

    “Because, there are no elections in the BJP and there is only nomination. They only talk about the Congress, but I would ask them how many candidates were there for the BJP president’s election. You do not believe in democracy and speak about others,” he charged.

    The prime minister and all BJP leaders during debates in Parliament talked of jobs, but there are 65,000 vacancies in the government in Himachal Pradesh and 14 lakh across the country and the prime minister is giving out job certificates to only 75,000 people.

    He alleged that the BJP was not filling up lakhs of vacancies and was not looking at rising unemployment and inflation.

    “Farmers do not have mandis to sell their produce. They do not even get MSP. Those selling fruits at much higher rates after buying cheaper from farmers here are supported by the BJP and the chief minister. Do you need such a government,” he asked.

    Kharge said the Congress had fulfilled all promises made earlier and “we will also waive loans of farmers here”.

    He hailed the soldiers from Himachal Pradesh who are protecting the country’s borders and said because of them “we are alive”.

    “If you did not protect the country, we all would have not been alive as the enemy would have entered and cut all our heads.”

    He also targeted the BJP government over the Agniveer scheme for short-term recruitment in the armed forces.

    After a four-year stint in the forces, the youths will not get any pension or gratuity and they will not be even called ex-servicemen, he said.

    The BJP is “in the habit of fooling people” and it does nothing but abuse the Congress.

    “They (BJP leaders) do not chant any mantra after waking up in morning but abuse the Congress on various issues. That is their way but we work for the people,” he said.

    Kharge also listed out the 10 promises made by the Congress to the people of Himachal and said all of them will be fulfilled.

    “These are not our jumlas like those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. These are our promises. I will only urge people to vote for the Congress and I am getting information that a Congress government will be formed in Himachal Pradesh,” he said.

    BANUTI: Addressing his first public meeting in the Himachal Pradesh assembly elections, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday trained his gun on the BJP and said it may have fooled people across the country with its “jumlas” but cannot do so in the hill state.

    “People here are educated, understand everything and take a considered decision (in voting). The BJP may have been able to fool people all over the country with its jumlas (rhetoric) of Rs 15 lakh in bank accounts and jobs, but it cannot do so here,” Kharge said.

    Kharge, who was elected Congress president recently, arrived in Himachal Pradesh Tuesday evening and addressed his first public meeting in Banuti in support of party candidate from the Shimla Rural assembly constituency Vikramaditya Singh on Wednesday.

    The Congress is seeking to wrest power from the BJP in the hill state, where the Congress and the BJP have governed alternately for the past many decades.

    Polling in Himachal Pradesh will be held on November 12 and the counting of votes will be taken up on December 8.

    Kharge said the Congress would fulfil all its promises made in the manifesto and the restoration of the old pension scheme would be the first decision of its government, if elected.

    “As far as the old pension scheme is concerned, it will be implemented first. This is our promise and if given a chance this will be the first thing to be done,” he said.

    Restoration of the old pension scheme, 300 units of free power, a Rs 680-crore StartUp fund, one lakh jobs and Rs 1,500 per month for women aged between 18 and 60 years are among the promises the Congress has made in its manifesto for the Himachal Pradesh polls.

    The Congress president alleged that the BJP wins elections by making false promises and spreading lies.

    “Why do you speak untruth? Speak truth and then seek votes. You also said you will provide 2 crore jobs every year and had you fulfilled your promise, there would have been 18 crore jobs by now and the youth would not have been unemployed,” he said, targeting the BJP.

    Donning a Himachali cap, he said he comes from south India but will speak in Hindustani.

    Accusing the BJP of not practising internal democracy Kharge said he was elected as the Congress president and everyone knew how his election was held, but no one knew about J P Nadda’s election as the BJP president.

    “Because, there are no elections in the BJP and there is only nomination. They only talk about the Congress, but I would ask them how many candidates were there for the BJP president’s election. You do not believe in democracy and speak about others,” he charged.

    The prime minister and all BJP leaders during debates in Parliament talked of jobs, but there are 65,000 vacancies in the government in Himachal Pradesh and 14 lakh across the country and the prime minister is giving out job certificates to only 75,000 people.

    He alleged that the BJP was not filling up lakhs of vacancies and was not looking at rising unemployment and inflation.

    “Farmers do not have mandis to sell their produce. They do not even get MSP. Those selling fruits at much higher rates after buying cheaper from farmers here are supported by the BJP and the chief minister. Do you need such a government,” he asked.

    Kharge said the Congress had fulfilled all promises made earlier and “we will also waive loans of farmers here”.

    He hailed the soldiers from Himachal Pradesh who are protecting the country’s borders and said because of them “we are alive”.

    “If you did not protect the country, we all would have not been alive as the enemy would have entered and cut all our heads.”

    He also targeted the BJP government over the Agniveer scheme for short-term recruitment in the armed forces.

    After a four-year stint in the forces, the youths will not get any pension or gratuity and they will not be even called ex-servicemen, he said.

    The BJP is “in the habit of fooling people” and it does nothing but abuse the Congress.

    “They (BJP leaders) do not chant any mantra after waking up in morning but abuse the Congress on various issues. That is their way but we work for the people,” he said.

    Kharge also listed out the 10 promises made by the Congress to the people of Himachal and said all of them will be fulfilled.

    “These are not our jumlas like those of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. These are our promises. I will only urge people to vote for the Congress and I am getting information that a Congress government will be formed in Himachal Pradesh,” he said.

  • Gujarat polls: Kharge chairs CEC meet, Cong’s 1st list of candidates to be out very soon

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge chaired a meeting of the party’s central election committee (CEC) here on Friday during which several candidates for the upcoming Gujarat Assembly polls were finalised.

    Sources said the opposition party’s first list of candidates for the Gujarat polls will be out very soon.

    Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi joined the meeting online, while the rest of the participants attended it physically at the AICC headquarters here.

    CEC members and party general secretaries Mukul Wasnik and K C Venugopal, besides Mohsina Kidwai, Girija Vyas and Ambika Soni, were among those present at the meeting.

    All India Congress Committee (AICC) in charge for Gujarat Raghu Sharma and the party’s state unit chief, Jagdish Thakor, were also in attendance.

    The Congress is seeking to oust the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from government in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where the saffron party has been in power for more than two decades.

    Elections to the 182-member Gujarat Assembly will be held in two phases — December 1 and 5 — while the votes will be counted on December 8.

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge chaired a meeting of the party’s central election committee (CEC) here on Friday during which several candidates for the upcoming Gujarat Assembly polls were finalised.

    Sources said the opposition party’s first list of candidates for the Gujarat polls will be out very soon.

    Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi joined the meeting online, while the rest of the participants attended it physically at the AICC headquarters here.

    CEC members and party general secretaries Mukul Wasnik and K C Venugopal, besides Mohsina Kidwai, Girija Vyas and Ambika Soni, were among those present at the meeting.

    All India Congress Committee (AICC) in charge for Gujarat Raghu Sharma and the party’s state unit chief, Jagdish Thakor, were also in attendance.

    The Congress is seeking to oust the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from government in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, where the saffron party has been in power for more than two decades.

    Elections to the 182-member Gujarat Assembly will be held in two phases — December 1 and 5 — while the votes will be counted on December 8.

  • Rahul does not like backseat driving, best suited to be party’s ‘ideological compass’: Jairam Ramesh

    By PTI

    HYDERABAD: Rahul Gandhi does not like backseat driving or asserting his authority and his greatest value going forward will be to play the role of an ‘ideological compass’ for the Congress, senior leader Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday.

    A week after Mallikarjun Kharge, the first non-Gandhi president in over 24 years, took charge of the party, Ramesh said some people are calling Gandhi the elephant in the room but his response is that the former party chief is actually a ‘tiger on the road’.

    The Bharat Jodo Yatra, Ramesh told PTI, has been a ‘real booster dose’ for the public relationship of the party and its “two Cs”- connectivity for Gandhi and collectivity for the organisation. The most tangible impact is on Congress organisation. Congress morale is now at extraordinarily high levels. Whether this will translate into long-lasting public support is now dependent on the organisation,” the senior leader said.

    Ramesh, who is also walking in the Yatra, cited thinker and philosopher Albert Camus to describe Gandhi’s leadership style — “Don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me.”

    “Having known Mr. Gandhi for 18 years, and I know him fairly well, he does not like backseat driving, he does not like asserting his position or authority, he is a very democratic person,” Ramesh said.

    The journey undertaken by the party has had a transformative impact in terms of perceptions of Gandhi that had been “distorted very heavily” by the “BJP troll machine”, he said in an interview with PTI during the Yatra here.

    For him personally at the age of 68 as well as for the party organisation, the Yatra is the “last throw of the dice” and a “huge gamble”, Ramesh said.

    Asked what role Gandhi would play with Kharge taking over the party’s reins, the Congress general secretary in-charge communications said it is up to Kharge and Gandhi to decide that.

    “Speaking as a Congressman, an office bearer, member of Parliament, I think Mr Rahul Gandhi’s greatest value will be to play the role of an ideological compass for the party,” he said.

    Every party needs an ideological compass or a moral compass, and Rahul Gandhi is ideally suited for that role, Ramesh argued.

    “Now whether he plays that role or not is entirely between him and Mr Kharge. I can only speak for myself. I think his comparative advantage lies in playing the role of an ideological or moral compass, something like the role Mr PN Haksar (former principal secretary to PM) played vis-a-vis Mrs Indira Gandhi from 1967-73,” he said.

    “Of course Mr Haksar was a backroom man whereas Mr Gandhi is very much a front room person,” he added.

    Discussing the Yatra, which started at Kanyakumari on September 7, Ramesh said what it has done very visibly is energise the Congress organisation, be it in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh or Telangana.

    “The Bharat Jodo Yatra, I would not say has opened a window of opportunity, it has opened a door of opportunity. The narrative around the Congress and Gandhi has been transformed, it is no longer a negative vilification narrative,” the senior Congress leader said.

    It is a narrative that acknowledges that this is quite a unique attempt at mass contact, Ramesh said.

    Asked if Gandhi has been a revelation during the Yatra, Ramesh said, “I would not say revelation, it is a revelation for the people who vilified him, who ran him down. It is the real person who is covering 22 km every day. So it is not a new Rahul, it is the real Rahul that has come out.”

    There was a campaign ever since 2009 — when the Congress came back with a heightened majority — to damage, vilify, malign and defame him, and also the Congress party, he said.

    “The election defeat in 2014 and 2019, I don’t think the blame is his (Gandhi). The defeat certainly affected his public persona and the fact that he lost from Amethi as well. What this Yatra has done is that it has given an opportunity for Rahul Gandhi to have an unmediated connection with the people without the media. He does not have a spin machine around him, he is walking 22-23 km daily meeting thousands of people and interacting with a variety of organisations. There is no doubt that post-Bharat Jodo Yatra Rahul Gandhi would be seen dramatically differently both within the organisation and outside as well,” Ramesh said.

    “What I find interesting is that by and large nine of the 10 critics who vilified Gandhi have changed their view or have kept quiet.”

    He dismissed suggestions that the Congress was only focussed on the Yatra and not on the upcoming assembly polls, saying the party organisation was in place and while Ashok Gehlot was leading the charge in Gujarat, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was doing so in Himachal Pradesh.

    If Rahul Gandhi is called upon to campaign, he would take a couple of days off and go for the campaign, he added.

    Ramesh also rejected claims that the Congress is strong in the South and weak in the North.

    The Congress after having gone through the Covid pandemic is now going through Yatra-itis’, he said, citing the main Yatra and sub-Yatras being held in various states.

    Asked about the impact the Yatra would have in the long run, Ramesh said it depends on the organisation and the type of changes AICC chief Kharge and his team are able to put in place.

    “It is not a magic wand, as I said, It is a booster dose. We keep needing booster doses from time to time. This I think is the first real meaningful booster dose after a long time,” he said.

    On whether the party was on the path to revival on the road to 2024 general elections, Ramesh said he would be very circumspect as he believed in the Narayana Murthy model of management which is under promise and overachieve.

    “I am not going to take a gigantic leap and say the Bharat Jodo Yatra is a metamorphosis for 2024, it is a long haul, we have very many deep challenges that we have to confront, it is an opportunity that has been opened,” he said.

    HYDERABAD: Rahul Gandhi does not like backseat driving or asserting his authority and his greatest value going forward will be to play the role of an ‘ideological compass’ for the Congress, senior leader Jairam Ramesh said on Wednesday.

    A week after Mallikarjun Kharge, the first non-Gandhi president in over 24 years, took charge of the party, Ramesh said some people are calling Gandhi the elephant in the room but his response is that the former party chief is actually a ‘tiger on the road’.

    The Bharat Jodo Yatra, Ramesh told PTI, has been a ‘real booster dose’ for the public relationship of the party and its “two Cs”- connectivity for Gandhi and collectivity for the organisation. The most tangible impact is on Congress organisation. Congress morale is now at extraordinarily high levels. Whether this will translate into long-lasting public support is now dependent on the organisation,” the senior leader said.

    Ramesh, who is also walking in the Yatra, cited thinker and philosopher Albert Camus to describe Gandhi’s leadership style — “Don’t walk behind me; I may not lead. Don’t walk in front of me; I may not follow. Just walk beside me.”

    “Having known Mr. Gandhi for 18 years, and I know him fairly well, he does not like backseat driving, he does not like asserting his position or authority, he is a very democratic person,” Ramesh said.

    The journey undertaken by the party has had a transformative impact in terms of perceptions of Gandhi that had been “distorted very heavily” by the “BJP troll machine”, he said in an interview with PTI during the Yatra here.

    For him personally at the age of 68 as well as for the party organisation, the Yatra is the “last throw of the dice” and a “huge gamble”, Ramesh said.

    Asked what role Gandhi would play with Kharge taking over the party’s reins, the Congress general secretary in-charge communications said it is up to Kharge and Gandhi to decide that.

    “Speaking as a Congressman, an office bearer, member of Parliament, I think Mr Rahul Gandhi’s greatest value will be to play the role of an ideological compass for the party,” he said.

    Every party needs an ideological compass or a moral compass, and Rahul Gandhi is ideally suited for that role, Ramesh argued.

    “Now whether he plays that role or not is entirely between him and Mr Kharge. I can only speak for myself. I think his comparative advantage lies in playing the role of an ideological or moral compass, something like the role Mr PN Haksar (former principal secretary to PM) played vis-a-vis Mrs Indira Gandhi from 1967-73,” he said.

    “Of course Mr Haksar was a backroom man whereas Mr Gandhi is very much a front room person,” he added.

    Discussing the Yatra, which started at Kanyakumari on September 7, Ramesh said what it has done very visibly is energise the Congress organisation, be it in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh or Telangana.

    “The Bharat Jodo Yatra, I would not say has opened a window of opportunity, it has opened a door of opportunity. The narrative around the Congress and Gandhi has been transformed, it is no longer a negative vilification narrative,” the senior Congress leader said.

    It is a narrative that acknowledges that this is quite a unique attempt at mass contact, Ramesh said.

    Asked if Gandhi has been a revelation during the Yatra, Ramesh said, “I would not say revelation, it is a revelation for the people who vilified him, who ran him down. It is the real person who is covering 22 km every day. So it is not a new Rahul, it is the real Rahul that has come out.”

    There was a campaign ever since 2009 — when the Congress came back with a heightened majority — to damage, vilify, malign and defame him, and also the Congress party, he said.

    “The election defeat in 2014 and 2019, I don’t think the blame is his (Gandhi). The defeat certainly affected his public persona and the fact that he lost from Amethi as well. What this Yatra has done is that it has given an opportunity for Rahul Gandhi to have an unmediated connection with the people without the media. He does not have a spin machine around him, he is walking 22-23 km daily meeting thousands of people and interacting with a variety of organisations. There is no doubt that post-Bharat Jodo Yatra Rahul Gandhi would be seen dramatically differently both within the organisation and outside as well,” Ramesh said.

    “What I find interesting is that by and large nine of the 10 critics who vilified Gandhi have changed their view or have kept quiet.”

    He dismissed suggestions that the Congress was only focussed on the Yatra and not on the upcoming assembly polls, saying the party organisation was in place and while Ashok Gehlot was leading the charge in Gujarat, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was doing so in Himachal Pradesh.

    If Rahul Gandhi is called upon to campaign, he would take a couple of days off and go for the campaign, he added.

    Ramesh also rejected claims that the Congress is strong in the South and weak in the North.

    The Congress after having gone through the Covid pandemic is now going through Yatra-itis’, he said, citing the main Yatra and sub-Yatras being held in various states.

    Asked about the impact the Yatra would have in the long run, Ramesh said it depends on the organisation and the type of changes AICC chief Kharge and his team are able to put in place.

    “It is not a magic wand, as I said, It is a booster dose. We keep needing booster doses from time to time. This I think is the first real meaningful booster dose after a long time,” he said.

    On whether the party was on the path to revival on the road to 2024 general elections, Ramesh said he would be very circumspect as he believed in the Narayana Murthy model of management which is under promise and overachieve.

    “I am not going to take a gigantic leap and say the Bharat Jodo Yatra is a metamorphosis for 2024, it is a long haul, we have very many deep challenges that we have to confront, it is an opportunity that has been opened,” he said.

  • Congress chief Kharge visits Ambedkar’s memorial, Azad’s ‘mazaar’; pays homage to them

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday visited the memorial and ‘mazaar’ of B R Ambedkar and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, and paid tributes to the two freedom fighters and former Union ministers.

    After visiting Ambedkar’s memorial here, Kharge posted a quote of the former law minister and the chief architect of the Constitution on Twitter. “Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, Bhakti or hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship. Visited Dr B.R. Ambedkar Memorial in Delhi today and paid floral tributes to Babasaheb,” Kharge, who took over as Congress chief on Wednesday, said in a tweet and posted pictures of him paying homage to Ambedkar at the memorial.

    Kharge also visited the ‘mazaar (grave)’ of Azad here and paid floral tributes to India’s first Education Minister.

    Mallikarjun Kharge paying tributes to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad at his grave in New Delhi. (Photo | PTI)

    “Paid floral tributes to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad at his mazaar in Delhi. A revolutionary freedom fighter and India’s First Education Minister, he believed in our country’s democratic and secular credentials and strongly opposed the idea of partition on religious lines,” Kharge said on Twitter.

    Ahead of his taking over as Congress chief, Kharge had visited Rajghat on Wednesday and paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi.

    He had also visited the memorials of former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and former deputy prime minister Jagjivan Ram, and paid tributes to the leaders.

    On Wednesday, Kharge took charge as the Congress’ first non-Gandhi president in 24 years, citing Rahul Gandhi’s slogan “daro mat” to energise workers and declaring that the party will demolish the government’s “system of lies, treachery and hatred”.

    Kharge, 80, had defeated Shashi Tharoor to win the Congress presidential election, to succeed Sonia Gandhi.

    NEW DELHI: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday visited the memorial and ‘mazaar’ of B R Ambedkar and Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, and paid tributes to the two freedom fighters and former Union ministers.

    After visiting Ambedkar’s memorial here, Kharge posted a quote of the former law minister and the chief architect of the Constitution on Twitter. “Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, Bhakti or hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship. Visited Dr B.R. Ambedkar Memorial in Delhi today and paid floral tributes to Babasaheb,” Kharge, who took over as Congress chief on Wednesday, said in a tweet and posted pictures of him paying homage to Ambedkar at the memorial.

    Kharge also visited the ‘mazaar (grave)’ of Azad here and paid floral tributes to India’s first Education Minister.

    Mallikarjun Kharge paying tributes to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad at his grave in New Delhi. (Photo | PTI)

    “Paid floral tributes to Maulana Abul Kalam Azad at his mazaar in Delhi. A revolutionary freedom fighter and India’s First Education Minister, he believed in our country’s democratic and secular credentials and strongly opposed the idea of partition on religious lines,” Kharge said on Twitter.

    Ahead of his taking over as Congress chief, Kharge had visited Rajghat on Wednesday and paid homage to Mahatma Gandhi.

    He had also visited the memorials of former prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi and former deputy prime minister Jagjivan Ram, and paid tributes to the leaders.

    On Wednesday, Kharge took charge as the Congress’ first non-Gandhi president in 24 years, citing Rahul Gandhi’s slogan “daro mat” to energise workers and declaring that the party will demolish the government’s “system of lies, treachery and hatred”.

    Kharge, 80, had defeated Shashi Tharoor to win the Congress presidential election, to succeed Sonia Gandhi.

  • Pledged my full support, cooperation to Kharge in taking Congress forward: Tharoor

    Tharoor congratulated Kharge on his official assumption of the duties of the Congress president, and wished him success.