All India Congress Committee (AICC) vice president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the communal riots in States where elections are being held in order to further its central idea of dividing the country on communal lines.
Addressing the concluding function of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) president V.M. Sudheeran’s one month-long Janapaksha Yatra here, Mr. Gandhi said there were communal riots in Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand during the elections there. He said the central idea of the BJP and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government was to divide the people and run the government to further the interests of a few people.
Mr. Gandhi said the Congress party had always stood for the unity of the country and communal harmony. The policies and programmes of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government during the 10 years it was in power were directed at this singular concept, which centred on the principle of transferring power to the people. Listing out the various landmark programmes implemented by the erstwhile UPA government, Mr. Gandhi said this was made possible due to people’s fundamental belief in the Congress.
“Another view propounded by the Prime Minister and the RSS was that one man single-handedly could transform the country,” Mr. Gandhi said referring to the concentration of power in the hands of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
He said the Modi government had failed to deliver on its promise, including the one on bringing back black money from abroad during the first 100 days of its rule. Referring to Mr. Modi’s Australian visit, he said the Prime Minister was keen on delivering speeches in Parliaments of other countries while he preferred to maintain silence in Parliament.
He said the Janapaksha Yatra sought to embrace the common man. The Congress party in the State had been a model for others and he was sure that through hard work, the Congress could lead the United Democratic Front to its second consecutive term in office.
The concluding function was presided over by Mr. Sudheeran, who said the main thrust of his campaign was to change the political culture of the State and recapture its credibility. Congress Working Committee member A K Antony, former Union Minister Vayalar Ravi, Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, and Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala spoke on the occasion.
