Rahul says BJP spreads hatred, asks people to oust it from power

Press Trust of India Nuh/Mahendragarh: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said his party will not let the “hatred” being spread by the BJP on the basis of religion, language, and caste win and appealed to the people of Haryana to oust the ruling party in the Assembly polls. Gandhi was addressing a public meeting in Nuh that had witnessed violence last year after a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession was attacked by a mob, leading to the death of six people, including two home guards and a cleric. The fight is between ‘mohabbat’ (love) and ‘nafrat’ (hatred). The Congress spreads love while the BJP spreads “hatred”, Gandhi said on the last day of campaigning for the polls. “The most important thing is brotherhood. Wherever the BJP and RSS people go, they spread hatred. In whichever state they go, somewhere they talk about language, somewhere they talk about religion and somewhere they speak about caste. “Hatred has to be ended. India is not a country of hatred, it is the country of ‘mohabbat’... it is the country of ‘mohabbat ki dukan’, not ‘nafrat ka bazaar’,” said Gandhi.

Gandhi, who is the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha, said hatred will only weaken the country and spread sorrow and fear. “We will not let this hatred win. Love, brotherhood and unity will win in the country... Love is the only antidote to hatred. Love spreads brotherhood and with love, the country progresses. We talk about love but they (BJP) spread hatred and try to break the country,” he said. Holding a copy of the Constitution, Gandhi said it has protected the rights of the poor, farmers, and labourers but “the BJP and the RSS were hell-bent on attacking the Constitution.” “The fight is about this. If the Constitution does not remain, then you, the poor, would not have anything. Your land, money, and water will vanish. These will go into the hands of the select 20-25 people,” he said. Hitting out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issue of unemployment, Gandhi said Modi keeps making claims about development but he cannot make people understand how he took Haryana to the “top position in terms of unemployment”. “Modi ji runs the government of ‘arabpatis’.

He waived Rs 16 lakh crore of debt of 20-25 people,” he alleged and asked the gathering how much debt of farmers, labourers and the poor was waived by Modi. Money is being taken out of the pockets of the common people, Gandhi said as he talked about the “rising” prices of fuel and cooking gas cylinders and the “higher” cost of private school education. Gandhi attacked the BJP-RSS at another rally in Mahendragarh, accusing them of not believing in the Constitution and wanting to “destroy” it. “This fight is a battle of ideology.

On one side is the Congress and on the other side is the BJP and the RSS. We say that India should be run as per the Constitution,” he said. But whatever the BJP does, it does so to “weaken” the Constitution. “When the Congress is in power, it does not put pressure on the media as we want it to be independent and show the truth,’’ he added.