18 November,2024 07:00 PM IST | Ranchi | mid-day online correspondent
Pic/PTI
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday mocked Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) 'Ek rahenge toh safe rahenge (if we remain united, we will be safe)' slogan, claiming that it translated into the "unity" between Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and billionaires like Ambani.
According to news agency PTI, the Congress leader also attacked Modi for not visiting Manipur which has been "burning" for the past one-and-a-half years, and alleged that Shah was not taking interest in containing violence in the northeastern state as "vested interests" were at play.
"I will explain the real meaning of BJP's slogan 'Ek hai to safe hai'. It means if Modi, Shah and Ambani are 'ek (united),' then they are safe," Gandhi claimed at a press conference in Ranchi on the last day of campaigning for the Jharkhand Assembly Elections 2024.
The former Congress president alleged that the country's prime assets such as airports, ports and natural resources were being handed over to billionaires like Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani without following transparent tender processes.
According to PTI, Gandhi asserted that caste census was a must for the country and it would provide wealth distribution data, helping the Congress to take "accurate decisions".
"I consider it a mistake that the UPA (United Progressive Alliance) government, which came up with the idea of a caste census, did not implement it," the Rae Bareli Member of Parliament (MP) asserted.
A caste census will reveal the situation of Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) - who form 73 per cent of India's population - in the country's power structure, said Gandhi, adding that the survey will also lead to the country's development and transformation.
"This is a battle of ideologies. On one hand is the INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) bloc which is protecting the Constitution and wants to run a government of poor, Dalits and Adivasis. On the other hand are those powers that want to destroy the Constitution. This is what senior leaders of BJP and RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) have said," he alleged.
"I had said in the Lok Sabha that the Congress and the INDIA bloc will conduct a caste census to know the percentage of Dalits, Adivasis and backward communities, and their participation in different institutions. I also said that the 50 per cent cap on reservations will be removed by the Congress and the INDIA bloc," the Congress leader said during the press conference ahead of the Jharkhand Assembly Elections 2024.
He alleged that the PM is lying when he says that Gandhi is against reservations.
"I am not against reservations, I want to increase it beyond 50 per cent. I requested PM Modi to hold caste census and increase reservations but he did not respond," he said, adding that the BJP is against "our plans" of increasing reservations and conducting caste census.
"Congress will get caste census done to find out representation of OBCs, SCs, tribals in institutions, private firms, judiciary and other institutions," he said.
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He also spoke about the Manipur violence and said that the entire country is watching what is happening in the northeastern state.
"Manipur has been burning for the past one-and-a-half years but PM Modi did not visit the state even once. I went there, saw the situation and urged the government to control the violence. The (Union) Home Minister should have done his work but he is not taking interest... some vested interest is at play," he alleged.
The Congress leader, however, did not provide any evidence to back his allegations.
Speaking on the Jharkhand Assembly Elections 2024, he said, "We will conduct caste census here and increase the reservation. ST reservations will be increased from 26 per cent to 28 per cent, SC reservations from 10 per cent to 12 per cent, and OBC from 14 per cent to 27 per cent. We are trying to implement this, but BJP people are trying to stop us," he said.
Terming the BJP as "anti-tribal", Gandhi said it arrested Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and tried to intimidate him with false cases.
The Enforcement Directorate had arrested Soren on January 31 in a money laundering case linked to a land scam. He was released from jail on June 28 after the high court granted him bail.
Accusing the BJP-led Centre of working against the interests of the state, Gandhi claimed that it is not releasing Rs 1.36 lakh crore coal dues of Jharkhand besides other funds besides land compensation and other dues creating obstacles to development.
"We want to run government for the poor, not for billionaires but BJP is handing over mines, forests, land in Jharkhand to capitalists," he alleged.
The Congress leader accused PM Modi of handing over the country's wealth to a few billionaires and charged him with trying to transfer Rs 1 lakh crore worth of Dharavi land in Maharashtra to Adani.
He also alleged that political decisions in the country were being influenced by billionaires.
"In the political meeting to topple the Maharashtra government, Adani was present besides Home Minister Shah," Gandhi claimed.
He promised that if voted to power, the INDIA bloc would give 10 lakh jobs to the youths of Jharkhand, Rs 2,500 financial assistance to women, make gas cylinders available at Rs 450 and distribute 7 kg of free ration under food security and health insurance cover of upto Rs 15 lakh.
In the second phase of Jharkhand assembly elections, polling for 38 seats will be held on November 20. Votes will be counted on November 23.
(With PTI inputs)
