Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi Wednesday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), calling them “traitors” and accusing them of attacking the Constitution, weakening reservation and “selling” the country’s economic system to a handful of industrialists.
Holding up a copy of the Constitution while addressing the Bahujan Swabhiman Sammelan in Amethi, he repeatedly invoked B R Ambedkar, Veera Pasi, Mahatma Gandhi, Guru Nanak, Kabir and Narayan Guru, asserting that the Constitution embodied the collective voice and ideology of social justice icons across the country.
“When you go home and RSS workers speak about Narendra Modi and Amit Shah, tell them openly that your Prime Minister is a traitor, your Home Minister is a traitor and your organisation is a traitor. You have sold India and attacked our Constitution,” he said.
“Narendra Modi ne Hindustan ka pura ka pura dhan aapki jeb se nikal liya. Hindustan ka arthik system Adani aur Ambani ko pakda diya hai (Narendra Modi has taken away the country’s wealth from your pockets. He has handed over India’s economic system to Adani and Ambani,” Gandhi alleged.
Reiterating his claim that an “economic storm is coming” and that “the government will not be able to save you”, the MP claimed the Prime Minister would try to evade responsibility by crying before the public just like he did in the past during the Covid-19 pandemic or demonetisation.
“Remember this, Narendra Modi will cry and again say it is not his fault, just as he did during demonetisation and Covid. But I am telling you that the fault lies with Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and the RSS,” Gandhi said.
He also accused the Prime Minister of hypocrisy over economic issues and foreign visits. “The Prime Minister tells people not to buy gold and not to travel abroad, but then himself travels abroad in aircraft worth thousands of crores,” Gandhi said.
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He added, “Such inflation is coming that you would never have seen in your lifetime. An economic storm is coming and the government will not be able to save you.”
Gandhi also alleged that the BJP and RSS were systematically weakening the ideals of equality and social justice enshrined in the Constitution: “We remember Veera Pasi and Ambedkar, but we do not protect their ideology. An attack on the Constitution is happening before our eyes.”
Describing the Constitution as more than “just a book”, he said, “The Constitution is not an ordinary book. It carries the voice of Ambedkar, Veera Pasi, Gandhi, Guru Nanak, Kabir and many great figures of the country.”
Targeting the BJP over reservation and institutions, he alleged that the RSS and BJP had weakened public sector jobs, reservation and independent institutions.
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“The Constitution said there should be a public sector, reservation and justice in the judiciary. Narendra Modi and the RSS have destroyed it,” alleged Rahul.
Gandhi is on the second day of his visit to his family strongholds of Rae Bareli and Amethi.
On Tuesday, in Rae Bareli, he had claimed that global tensions, especially the Iran vs US-Israel conflict and the situation around the Strait of Hormuz, could trigger an unprecedented rise in fuel prices, inflation and shortages.
The Bahujan Swabhiman Sammelan is part of the Congress’ attempt to sharpen its social justice and Constitution-centric politics in Uttar Pradesh, particularly among Dalit, backward caste and marginalised communities, ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections.
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BJP’s response
The BJP lashed out at Gandhi, saying the Congress leader’s words reflect his anarchic mindset and character.
BJP president Nitin Nabin said Gandhi’s remarks were an insult to the 140 crore people of the country and demanded an apology from him. “The kind of statement he gave clearly reflects his anarchic mindset and character. The remarks also reflect his frustration and disappointment with his party facing defeats in elections,” the president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said.
He demanded that Gandhi apologise to the people of the country. “The man who has put a curb on terror incidents, ended Naxalism, enhanced the tiranga’s (Tricolour) respect, for such a person you will use such kind of words?” Nabin asked.
