Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his campaigning in Gujarat’s Patan on Monday addressed a massive gathering in support of candidate Chandanji Thakor.
After being given a grand welcome with sword and turban, Gandhi started his speech by naming Jai Ambaji and Jai Bahuchar Mataji.
He then said, “We have the Lok Sabha elections and the battle of two ideologies is going on. The question is, will India’s democracy and constitution survive or not? People of BJP and RSS want the constitution to be abolished. We, the Congress Party and India Alliance constitution protect the constitution.”
Rahul Gandhi further said, “BJP leaders are openly saying that if we win the elections, we will tear up this constitution and throw it away. It is this constitution that protects the poor, the farmers.”
The leader also said if voted to power, “We will bring Mahalakshmi Yojana, in which a list of India’s poorest families will be made and the name of the woman of the family will be written, following which, Rs 8,500 will be deposited in the government bank account every month. The money will go to the woman’s account.”
Gandhi also said when in power, his government would conduct a nation-wide caste and economic survey on priority.
“Ninety per cent of the country’s population comprises SCs, STs and OBCs, but you will not find their representation in the corporate, media (sectors), private hospitals, private universities or as bureaucrats in government. We will first do a caste survey and economic survey after coming to power,” he said.
“Farmers debts weren’t waived off, but they have waived off Rs 16 lakh crore of debt of 22-25 people. You see what has happened in the last 10 years. These 22-23 people have as much wealth as 70 crore Hindustanis. You know the names. We had waived the debt of the farmers,” he added.
“The biggest issue in the country is unemployment and inflation, but you won’t see that on TV, because the media will never see the poor? You will see Narendra Modi and celebrities in the media but you will not see the suffering of farmers,” he further said.
He also said, “You saw the dedication of Ram Mandir which was done with great fanfare, but not a single poor person was seen in it? Not a single farmer was seen. The President is a tribal, the Ram Mandir was inaugurated, the Parliament was inaugurated but the President was not even allowed to enter.”
Attacking the government on the Agniveer scheme the Gandhi scion said, “When a young man of the country joins the army, he joins with the spirit of patriotism, but I think the Agniveer Yojana is an insult to the soldiers of the country. We will cancel this scheme. Because this scheme has come from Modi’s office and not from the army and this is harming the country.”
Gandhi also stated, “90 IAS officers are running the government in Delhi. They distribute every rupee of the budget. How much money will come to Gujarat, how much will go to the Bullet Train Project, will Agniveer Yojana be there or not, how much scholarship will Dalits and backward classes get, where and how many roads will be made, at what cost, these decisions are taken by 90 IAS officers. Out of 90, only three are from the backward class. They are made to sit behind in a corner. They are given a small department. There is none in the finance ministry. No one in big ministries.”
The ruling dispensation was also against the system of reservation, he claimed.
The Wayanad MP further claimed that unemployment is at a 45-year high in the country.
Meanwhile, on his arrival, Kshatriyas hoisted black flags against Rahul Gandhi’s raja maharajas statement.
His comments about the Rajput community have sparked outrage from Kshatriyas in Patan. The leaders of Patan Kshatriya Samaj unfurled black flags at TB Three Rasta in opposition to Rahul Gandhi’s statement. More than 15 leaders were reportedly detained by the police.
“I remember the Maharajas of Bhavnagar, what they have done for the country, dedicated their kingdom to the country, and I want to thank them, and I respect them,” later Rahul Gandhi said in his speech.
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