Dalits, backwards, tribals, poor general-caste people being made slaves again: Rahul slams BJP

Mhow (MP), Jan 27 (PTI) Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi claimed on Monday that Dalits, backwards, tribals and poor general-caste people in the country are being made "slaves" again and alleged that the ruling BJP's vision for the 21st century is that either they are made to do labour work or sent to jail for raising their voice.

Gandhi, who has been unwell for the last few days, because of which he could not participate in the "Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan" rally in Karnataka's Belagavi last week as well as missed out on campaigning for the Delhi Assembly polls, made a strong push for the Congress's social-justice narrative and accused the BJP-RSS of insulting B R Ambedkar while addressing a rally here.

Lashing out at Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat over his remarks that India's "true independence" was established the day the Ram temple in Ayodhya was consecrated, the former Congress chief said the statement shows that Bhagwat does not believe in the Constitution. He said the remarks were an insult to Ambedkar's life that was dedicated to making the Constitution.

"A few days ago, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat said, 'India did not get independence on August 15, 1947 and real independence was achieved after Modiji came'. This is a direct attack on the Constitution," Gandhi said, addressing the "Jai Bapu, Jai Bhim, Jai Samvidhan" rally in this Madhya Pradesh town, where Ambedkar was born.

With a copy of the Constitution in hand, the Congress leader said, "This is Ambedkar's Constitution and some days ago, it was insulted by Mohan Bhagwat, who said the Constitution did not give us independence and the Constitution has nothing to do with it as according to him, real independence was gained after Modiji came. This means he (Bhagwat) does not believe in the Constitution." "Ambedkarji's life was dedicated to making this Constitution and that has been directly insulted by Mohan Bhagwat," he alleged.

Gandhi claimed that Dalits, backwards, tribals and poor general-caste people "are being made slaves" again.

"I am surprised that your life is being destroyed and you are silently watching," he said.

Referring to Bhagwat's "independence" remarks, Gandhi said, "Did you see a poor person at the Ram mandir inauguration? They did not let the tribal president go inside the temple, they did not let Dalits and backwards go inside. At Parliament's inauguration, they did not allow the president to go inside. Modiji said, 'you are a tribal, you cannot come inside'." Addressing the rally that saw a big turnout, the Congress leader said Dalits, backwards and tribals had no rights before independence, when only maharajas and rajas enjoyed rights.

"The change was brought with independence. You got land and rights. The BJP-RSS wants an India of pre-independence, where common people had no rights and only the likes of Adani and Ambani had rights. They want the poor to suffer in silence and not dream while the country is run by billionaires," he said.

Asserting that a battle of ideologies is going on in the country, the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha said on one hand, there is the Congress that believes in the Constitution and is fighting for it, and on the other is the BJP and the RSS that are against Ambedkar's and Mahatma Gandhi's Constitution and are trying to destroy it.

The Constitution is not just a book, but it reflects India's thinking for thousands of years, he said at the rally that was attended by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and party leaders Jairam Ramesh, K C Venugopal, chief ministers Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu (Himachal Pradesh) and Revanth Reddy (Telangana), among others.

Since the BJP wanted to finish off the Constitution, it gave the slogan of "400 paar" in the run-up to last year's Lok Sabha polls with the intention of changing it, Gandhi said.

The INDIA opposition bloc, including the Congress, fought against the saffron party and after the polls, Modi had to bow down before the Constitution, he added.

The Congress leader asserted that the day the Constitution is finished, nothing will be left for the poor people of the country.

"There will be nothing for Dalits, backwards and Tribals. People like Adani and Ambani are being handed the country's resources. Where in the Constitution is it written that all resources be given to Adani? The Constitution says all citizens are equal and all Indians have the right to dream," he said.

In an apparent dig at Anant Ambani's wedding, Gandhi said billionaires spend thousands of crores on the weddings of their children, but when "you want to get your children married, you have to take a loan".

The more progress Adani and Ambani make and the money gets concentrated in the hands of billionaires, the less employment common people will have, he said.

Gandhi claimed that demonetisation and the Goods and Services tax (GST) were "tools to finish off the poor".

"They are not schemes but weapons. The GST is given by poor people. Lakhs of crores of rupees are being fleeced from your pockets. Loans of billionaires worth about Rs 16 lakh crore were waived. It was your money. I want to ask, which farmers', labourers' and students' loans were waived," he said.

Due to the flawed GST and demonetisation, small and medium businesses have been destroyed, he claimed.

"Without jobs, certification means nothing. Even IIT and IIM students are not getting employment," Gandhi said.

He stressed the need to ascertain how much of the country's resources are with Dalits, Adivasis, tribals and minorities.

He pointed out that one would not find Dalits, tribals and backwards among the owners of the 500 biggest companies in India.

He also highlighted that there is hardly any participation of Dalits, backwards and tribals in deciding the allocation of funds in the budget as there is sparse representation of these communities among the Union secretaries.

"Neither you have a share in the bureaucracy, in deciding the budget nor in running universities and hospitals nor in any other sector. The BJP just wants you to do two things -- either do labour work or if you raise your voice, go to jail. This is their vision for the 21st century," Gandhi said.

"That is why I told Modiji that 'you will never do it, but wherever our government comes, be it in Madhya Pradesh or in Delhi, we will get a caste survey conducted'," he added.

"In some time, we will disclose the share of Dalits, backwards and tribals in Telangana. We have started the work in Telangana and Karnataka. This will be a revolutionary step as people will get to know about their rightful share. We will get a caste census conducted across the country," he asserted.

"Narendra Modiji is afraid. He does not want to get it done. They (BJP) will never implement it. Modiji says he is an OBC, but still the backwards do not know their strength. It is an injustice and that is why we will carry out a caste census," Gandhi said.

He also asserted that the Congress will get the 50-per cent cap on reservation removed by getting a bill to this effect passed in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

The former Congress chief urged the party workers to protect the Constitution. PTI ASK SKC RC

Source: PTI