Washington/New Delhi. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said that democracy in India was badly damaged in the last 10 years, but now democracy is coming back on track. Gandhi made this remark while talking to journalists at a press conference at the National Press Club here on Tuesday.
Gandhi said, “I can tell you that Indian democracy has been damaged a lot in the last few years, now it is trying to get back on track but it was damaged.” Gandhi said, “I have seen how our government was snatched away from us in Maharashtra. I have seen all this with my own eyes. I have seen how our MLAs were bought and trapped and they suddenly became BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) MLAs. So in this way Indian democracy has been in danger, it has been weakened badly and now it is getting back on track again. I am confident that it will be strong again.”
He asked in a questioning tone, “If you look at the election results, does it make you more hopeful about democracy in India?” He said, “I mean there is hope but it is not enough to say that Indian voters keep changing their minds and are knowledgeable. The Indian voter receives information through a whole structured process. So if we do not have equal opportunities, then even if the voters are intelligent and keep changing their minds, it will not make much difference.”
He said, “We fought the elections at a time when our bank accounts were frozen. I don’t know of any democracy where this has happened. Maybe such things have been happening in Syria or Iraq. When we spoke to our treasurer during the elections, he clearly told us that we don’t have money. Now you may have voters whose views keep changing but you need an election campaign. You have to keep communicating, you have to keep holding meetings.”
Gandhi said, “There are more than 20 cases registered against me. I am the only person in Indian history who has been sentenced to jail for defamation. We have a Chief Minister who is currently in jail. Put it this way, once the Indian voter makes up his mind, he sticks to it. Of course they do. But the Indian voter needs a framework to work on it, which is not there.”
Gandhi continued his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said, “In the 21st century, there is a Prime Minister of a modern country who tells people that I talk to God. I am different from everyone else. You are ‘biological’ people and I am ‘non-biological’. I have direct contact with God. For us it was like game over (regarding the Prime Minister during the elections). We knew that we had defeated the Prime Minister.” He said, “And then the best thing that happened was when he (Modi) came to the Lok Sabha and took oath. He took the Constitution book in his hand and put it on his forehead.” Gandhi said, “This is an interesting paradox. On one hand he is destroying the Constitution. He is attacking the democratic structure and on the other hand the Indian people forced him to put it on his forehead.”
How can talking about maintaining the constitution be anti-national: Congress
Congress on Wednesday hit back at Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement on Rahul Gandhi and said how is it anti-national to talk about upholding the Constitution. The party’s media cell chief Pawan Khera also asked that when Prime Minister Narendra Modi goes abroad and makes horrific comments against India and Indian citizens, is he not anti-national? On Gandhi being criticized for his meeting with Democrat Ilhan Omar, who is known for her controversial stance on India, Congress said that BJP is in the (Central) government, so it should summon the US ambassador and take action if it finds something like this.
Kheda told ‘PTI Video’, “Ask him (Shah) to take action, (then) we will expose both the Prime Minister and the Home Minister. If the Prime Minister goes abroad and makes horrific comments against India and Indian citizens, then is he not anti-national?” He questioned, “If we are talking about maintaining the Constitution of India, how is it anti-national? Why is it that whenever we talk about maintaining the Constitution, the BJP has a problem? Why are they so against the Constitution?” Shah on Wednesday accused the Congress and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi of speaking anti-national things and standing with the forces that break the country and said that they have always put the country’s security in danger.
A senior leader of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also attacked Gandhi for his remarks on reservation and said as long as his party is there, nobody can touch reservation and nobody can play with the unity of the country.
Rahul Gandhi is on a four-day visit to America. During this, he addressed programs organized at many places including Georgetown University and Virginia’s suburb Herndon and expressed his views on many issues including democracy and elections in India.