Source : INDIA TODAY NEWS
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Sunday warned that Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar would face jail and Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah would face legal action over alleged electoral irregularities. The BJP hit back, with Amit Shah accusing Rahul Gandhi of rubbing salt into the wounds of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots by holding the INDIA bloc rally in Delhi on the anniversary of the violence.
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Addressing a massive ‘Chalo Dilli‘ rally at Ramlila Maidan, Rahul Gandhi said Kumar would eventually have to step down and face imprisonment over ‘vote theft’. He also warned PM Modi and Shah that they could not escape accountability, asserting that legal action would be taken against them.
The INDIA bloc organised the ‘Chalo Dilli‘ rally under its ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao‘ campaign, demanding Kumar’s resignation and alleging that the Election Commission had facilitated electoral manipulation to benefit the BJP.
Calling vote theft an attack on the country’s democracy and Constitution, Rahul Gandhi said, “This is not a simple theft, like stealing from a shop. This is the theft of the vote and voice of every citizen of India.”
He termed the alleged manipulation treason and claimed that constitutional institutions had been captured. He also alleged that 15 per cent of India’s voters had been removed from electoral rolls after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, arguing that this meant the election itself was illegal and stolen.
“I am not the one saying this, the Election Commission is saying this,” he claimed.
RAHUL CONTINUES TIRADE AGAINST PM
Rahul Gandhi said he did not hate PM Modi, Amit Shah or Gyanesh Kumar, describing himself and his party as people who believe in spreading love.
“None of these three is an enemy to me. For me, the voice of the country is more important than religion,” he said, accusing PM Modi of spreading hatred while claiming that people wanted love rather than hostility.
Drawing on the imagery of Lord Shiva’s procession and Tandava, Rahul Gandhi said everyone, irrespective of their identity, should have the freedom to participate.
He said the Ramlila Maidan rally represented not one political party or leader but the collective voice of India’s youth, women, farmers and workers, asserting that the Modi government was not bigger than the Constitution.
INDIA BLOC LEADERS ATTACK EC, BJP
Other INDIA bloc leaders also launched sharp attacks on the BJP and the Election Commission.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that several BJP governments, including the one at the Centre, had been formed through stolen mandates. Accusing PM Modi and Amit Shah of shielding Gyanesh Kumar, he said the Opposition would continue its fight until the CEC was removed.
“Modi jayega to hi loktantra bachega (Democracy will survive only when Modi goes),” Kharge said, adding that the alleged theft of votes had affected Dalits, women and young voters.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav likened the Opposition’s fight against vote theft to the Mahabharata, describing the Ramlila Maidan protest as a battle against vote thieves.
Comparing Gyanesh Kumar to Shakuni, the character who manipulated the dice game in the epic, Yadav called the CEC a “minion” of Modi and demanded that he be tried for treason and jailed. He also called the government a ‘do numbari sarkar‘ and Modi a ‘dus numbari PM’.
Mamata TMC chief Mamata Banerjee alleged that West Bengal had been victimised by the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, declaring that her party would continue fighting against it.
She accused the BJP of attacking democracy and stealing jobs, women’s dignity and donations. She also alleged that the party had looted religious institutions and the country’s treasury.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav described Ramlila Maidan as the “Haldighati of democracy” and predicted the BJP’s defeat in Uttar Pradesh and across the country in the upcoming Assembly polls next year. He said the younger generation would seek retribution for the alleged excesses against protesters.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said Gyanesh Kumar should resign if he had even an ounce of moral conscience, arguing that people had lost faith in him.
CPI(M) general secretary MA Baby accused PM Modi of lying to women and farmers and said the Opposition must unite to protect democracy and the Constitution.
Earlier today, the INDIA bloc leaders travelled in an open vehicle from the Minto Road-Connaught Place junction towards Ramlila Maidan, accompanied by supporters, as the Opposition stepped up its campaign against alleged vote theft.
AMIT SHAH, JP NADDA ATTACK RAHUL OVER 1984 RIOTS
Responding to the Opposition’s Ramlila Maidan rally, Amit Shah accused Rahul Gandhi of choosing the anniversary of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots to hold a political gathering, saying it would “rub salt in the wounds” of the victims.
Speaking at an event in Chandigarh at the same time when the INDIA bloc’s rally was going on, Amit Shah recalled the killing of thousands of Sikhs in Delhi and criticised the Congress over the violence. He also invoked former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s famous remark following the riots, “When a big tree falls, the earth shakes.”
Amit Shah said the Modi government reopened cases relating to the riots after coming to power in 2014 and provided compensation of Rs 5 lakh to the next of kin of each person killed. He also accused Rahul Gandhi of spreading lies, creating anarchy and disrupting Parliament.
“If you want to become PM, stay in mock Parliament your entire life. Your turn won’t come,” Amit Shah said.
Union Minister JP Nadda also termed the INDIA bloc rally a “foolish drama”, alleging that it was part of a conspiracy to create anarchy and destabilise an elected government.
Nadda accused Rahul Gandhi of being insensitive to the victims of the 1984 violence and claimed the rally would hurt Delhi’s traders during the festive season.
He alleged that previous protests had caused traders losses of nearly Rs 3,000 crore and estimated that Sunday’s rally could result in losses exceeding Rs 10,000 crore. He also accused the Gandhi family of not apologising to the Sikh community.
– Ends
(with inputs from PTI)
SOURCE :- TIMES OF INDIA
