Sonia Gandhi accuses BJP leaders of being arrogant
Hubli, Karnataka:
Launching a scathing attack on the BJP, senior Congress leader Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said Karnataka and the rest of the country cannot progress without getting rid of the ruling party’s loot, lies, arrogance and hatred.
Entering the fray for the 2023 Karnataka assembly elections here for the first time, Sonia also said that the Bharat Jodo Yatra led by her son Rahul Gandhi a few months ago was against those who spread hatred. “That was the reason lakhs of people joined Rahul Gandhi’s 4,000 kilometer march”.
“Neither Karnataka nor India can progress without getting rid of the BJP’s atmosphere of loot, lies, arrogance and hatred,” Sonia Gandhi said at her first public rally in the poll-bound state.
“It is everyone’s responsibility to strengthen our voice against the dark rule of this (BJP) government,” the former Congress president said. He was accompanied on the dais by Congress president M Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi and former Karnataka chief minister Jagadish Shettar, who recently quit the BJP and joined the party after being denied a ticket. The party has fielded six-time MLA Jagadish Shettar from the Hubli-Dharwad Central constituency, from where he had won the last assembly election in 2018.
Sonia Gandhi said that people have seen how upset the BJP is in this election, due to which it has resorted to all kinds of repression.
“Don’t you think dacoity has become the business of those in power? You didn’t give them power in 2018, but they looted the government and captured it. Then, their 40 per cent commission is busy looting the government. Gone,” she alleged.
Accusing BJP leaders of being ‘arrogant’, he said they neither respond to any question nor to any letter addressed to them.
Sonia Gandhi made an indirect reference to the letter written by the association of contractors in Karnataka to the Prime Minister that they are being charged 40 per cent commission for public works in the state.
Sonia Gandhi said, “They (BJP leaders) are not concerned about accountability. They think they have pocketed all the constitutional institutions. I want to ask you, have you ever seen such arbitrariness. Is democracy like this?” Kind of works? No.”
According to him, the situation today is such that BJP leaders openly threaten that the state will not get Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “blessings” if his party does not win the Karnataka elections.
Referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement at an election rally that there would be riots in Karnataka if the Congress came to power in the state, Sonia Gandhi, without naming him, said: “They say if the BJP loses, There will be riots here. On your behalf I want to tell them not to consider the people of Karnataka as powerless and helpless.’ He underlined that the people of the state do not depend on anybody’s blessings but rely on their own hard work and firm decisions.
“The people of Karnataka are not cowards and greedy for you to woo them. The people of Karnataka will tell you what they are made of on May 10.” Sonia Gandhi also raised the issue of Karnataka Milk Federation’s alleged attempt to merge the Nandini brand with Gujarat-based Amul.
He said, “Now is the time to tell them (BJP) that they have succeeded here in their conspiracy to loot a good institution like Nandini (Karnataka Milk Federation’s co-operative dairy brand) ignoring the interests of lakhs of farmers and milk producers.” Won’t happen.” Said.
Sonia Gandhi also appealed to the people to remind those in power that the fate of leaders is determined by the blessings of the people and not the other way around.
Invoking the name of 12th century social reformer Basaveshwara, he said that ‘Lord Basavanna’ was always in favor of giving equal opportunities to all without any discrimination.
Sonia Gandhi said the BJP was insulting the great Kannada poet Kuvempu and cautioned them against “playing with India’s history and centuries-old tradition of social justice”.
“Don’t push the country and Karnataka towards destruction to fulfill your (BJP) political interests,” the Congress leader said.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)