The Congress staged a massive rally against inflation in Jaipur on Sunday, calling upon the people to throw the BJP out of power at the Centre and bring the issues of price rise, unemployment, agricultural distress and crony capitalism to the centre-stage for their resolution. The Congress leaders alleged that the BJP was taking the country on the path of destruction.
Party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi-Vadra, accompanied by a battery of senior leaders from several States, slammed the Narendra Modi-led BJP government, which they said was out to sell whatever the Congress had built in 70 years. Ms. Vadra said the government was working for the benefit of Mr. Modi's select industrialist friends rather than the welfare of people and farmers.
The venue of the “Mahangai Hatao Maha Rally” was shifted to Jaipur after the Lt. Governor of Delhi cancelled permission for the march at Dwarka in the national capital. The Delhi Police had also refused the permission citing the COVID-19 guidelines.
AICC general secretary Ajay Maken had camped in Jaipur to look after the preparations, while the party formed 11 committees headed by Ministers to make arrangements related to the rally.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi was also present at the rally, but she did not address the gathering. She waved to the crowd from the dais when the participants in the rally at Vidyadhar Nagar Stadium raised slogans in her support.
In his address, Mr. Gandhi sought to differentiate between Hindus and Hindutvawadis (proponents of Hindutva) and blamed the latter for the spiralling prices of essential commodities, as they wanted to “cling to power” at any cost. He said the demonetisation, imposition of a flawed Goods and Services Tax and inflation had shattered the economy and brought suffering to people across the country.
The Wayanad MP said the country was witnessing a clash between two ideologies, which had different orientations towards the nation's development. “Hindu and Hindutva cannot have the same meaning. A Hindu is never afraid of anyone... He strives in search of truth. But a Hindutvawadi is always in pursuit of power, for which he would stoop to any level,” Mr Gandhi said.
Mr. Gandhi said the rule of Hindus should be brought back by uprooting Hindutvawadis, who were ruling the country since 2014. The difference between the two was the belief in ‘Satyagraha’ (holding onto truth) and ‘Sattagraha’ (pursuit of power), he said, while citing the example of Mahatma Gandhi, a true Hindu and a secular person, who fell victim to bullets fired by Nathuram Godse.
“A Hindu swallows his fear like Lord Shiva. On the other hand, fear dominates a Hindutvawadi and leads to hatred in him for others. Nowhere do the Hindu scriptures preach hatred or violence against anyone... Hinduism exhorts its followers to struggle for truth. In Bhagwat Geeta, Lord Krishan tells Arjuna to fight for truth, even against his brothers,” Mr. Gandhi said, explaining his vision of the Hindu religion.
The Congress leader pointed out that 1% of India's population was controlling 33% of wealth and 10% was controlling 65% of resources. Half of the country's population had only 6% of wealth with it as a result of the Centre's “flawed policies”, Mr. Gandhi said. He pointed out that the unorganised sector’s share of 52% in the national economy had been reduced to 20% in the BJP’s rule.
Mr. Gandhi alleged that Mr. Modi had “stabbed the farmers in the back” through the controversial farm laws and later apologised by repealing them.
“Our 700 farmers were martyred, but there was no condolence in the Parliament. The Congress government in Punjab gave financial assistance to the families of 400 farmers and jobs to 152 dependents, but the Centre said it could not give any compensation as it did know the identity of any farmer,” he said.
Mr. Gandhi said all countries had given benefits to common people during the pandemic, but the big companies in India were allowed to earn profit and ordinary people had died walking on roads to their native places. He said all sectors were being handed over gradually to the corporates, while the farmers and small shopkeepers who generated employment were being finished.
Earlier, Ms. Vadra said addressing the rally that it was the people's responsibility to make the government accountable and pose questions to it. “Whenever the elections come, the BJP leaders mislead the people by talking about China or other countries and raise communal and casteist issues. What has the Modi government done in seven years of its rule?” she asked.
Massive cutouts of the members of the Gandhi family were seen at the rally’s venue in Vidyadhar Nagar. Among others, Chief Ministers Ashok Gehlot of Rajasthan and Bhupesh Baghel of Chhattisgarh, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leaders Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Kamlal Nath, Sachin Pilot, Ajay Maken, Adhir Ranjan Chowhdhury, K.C. Venugopal and Pawan Bansal attended the rally.
