 "Pralhad Joshi")
In one of the sharpest attacks on Rahul Gandhi by the ruling BJP at the Centre, Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Pralhad Joshi on Friday called the Congress leader a "fake Gandhi" whose ideology was "fake" as well.
Speaking to reporters at the Parliament premises, Joshi said, "He (Rahul Gandhi) is not a descendant of Mahatma Gandhi. He is a 'nakli' (fake) Gandhi. And it is a fake ideology."
The BJP leader's comments came after Rahul Gandhi hurled a litany of charges at the Modi government. The BJP has also claimed that the Congress has become aggressive to divert attention from the probe against its top leaders by investigative agencies.
Earlier, at a press conference in the national capital, Rahul Gandhi said, "Why do they attack the Gandhi family? They do it because we fight for an ideology and there are crores of people like us. We fight for democracy, for communal harmony and we have been doing this for years. It's not just me who did that, it has been happening for years."
"My family sacrificed their lives. It's our responsibility because we fight for this ideology. It hurts us when Hindus-Muslims are pitted against each other, when Dalits are killed, when a woman is thrashed. So, we fight. This isn't just one family, this is an ideology," said Rahul Gandhi.
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Congress party leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and MP Mallikarjun Kharge among others chose to sport black outfits to mark their support for the protests called by the Congress on price rise and inflation.
While Rahul Gandhi chose to wear a black-coloured shirt, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra chose to wear a black suit.
Comparing PM Modi with Hitler, Rahul Gandhi said, "Hitler had also won elections, he too used to win elections. How did he use to do it? He had control of all of Germany's institutions...Give me the entire system, then I will show you how elections are won."
Rahul Gandhi had further said, "We're witnessing the death of democracy. What India has built brick by brick, starting almost a century ago, is being destroyed in front of your eyes. Anybody who stands against this idea of the onset of dictatorship is viciously attacked, jailed, arrested and beaten up."
Soon after Rahul Gandhi's press conference, BJP's Gaurav Bhatia said, "Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi had got bail in 2015 in the National Herald case. This case was filed long back and they were not even raising such issues (that ED is being controlled) then. It's just a tactic to divert attention from the fact that they have been caught red-handed. Bhatia's comments came after Rahul Gandhi alleged that ED and other independent institutions were being controlled by the BJP and the RSS and used to intimidate the Opposition."
The Congress today is protesting against rising prices, unemployment and GST rate hike. In Delhi, the party leaders are marching to the Rashtrapati Bhawan from the Parliament. The party's state units will hold similar protests across the country.
Citing the restrictions, the Delhi police has denied permission to the Congress for holding a protest in the national capital.
(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
