Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government of turning India’s soldiers into laborers and vowed to abolish the Agniveer scheme upon coming to power on June 4.
Speaking at a public rally in Haryana’s Mahendragarh, Gandhi emphasized that India’s borders are protected by the youth from Haryana and other states.
While addressing the rally in Haryana, Rahul Gandhi stated, “You have patriotism in your heart, blood, and DNA. Narendra Modi ji, for the first time, has turned India’s soldiers into laborers.”
Gandhi further said, “He (PM Modi) says there will be two kinds of soldiers who sacrifice their lives for the country: one, a regular jawan or officer whose family will receive a pension, status, and all other benefits; the other, a poor family’s son named Agniveer, who will not receive the status of ‘shaheed,’ nor any pension or other benefits.”
Rahul Gandhi Says, “The Army Does Not Want This Scheme”
He further declared that after June 4, the INDIA bloc would dismantle the Agniveer scheme and discard it. He continued, “The Army does not want this scheme… this scheme is imposed by the PMO. The INDIA bloc government will come to power and the first thing we shall do is throw this Agniveer scheme in the dustbin.”
The soldiers who sacrificed their lives will be only of one category… the government of India will work for everybody, everybody guarding India’s borders will get the status of ‘shaheed’. We are going to tear this Agniveer scheme into pieces and dump it in the dustbin,” said the Congress MP.
During the rally, Rahul Gandhi also said, “Whenever we raise the issue of farm loan waivers, the media and BJP leaders claim that it will destroy the economy. What happened when he waived loans of 22 ‘arabpatis’ (billionaires)?”
He added, “Whenever I crossed through farm belts during my Bharat Jodo Yatra, the peasants shared their grief of not getting a good price for their crops. The INDIA bloc would constitute a ‘Karza Maafi Commission’ (Loan Waiver Commission) that would look into farmers’ demands for loan waivers, and the Centre would waive the loans. If Modi ji can waive off Rs 16 lakh crore worth of loans of 22 billionaires, we shall also waive off the loans of our farmers.”
MUST READ: THE PRIME MINISTER’S INTERVIEW
Rahul Gandhi Takes A Jibe At PM Modi, Says, “His Reputation And Image Has Been Lost”
Rahul Gandhi, in his rally, further said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lost his image, adding that he can make PM Modi say whatever he wants to. “His (PM Modi) reputation, image has been lost. ‘Gubbara phat gaya hai’. Now, whatever I want, I can make him speak that. I said, Modi ji, you haven’t taken the name of Adani-Ambani for ten years, you should take their names. After 2 days, Narendra Modi said, Adani-Ambani is giving money to Congress in Tempo. Modi ji, how do you know that they are giving money in Tempo? And if you know that, why didn’t you start an inquiry over your friends by ED, CBI, and I-T? After I said we will transfer money into bank accounts ‘taka-tak, taka-tak’, the PM also started using ‘taka-tak’ in his speeches.”
The Congress Leader also accused the government of being run by the “Modi-Adani partnership.” While taking a brutal jibe at PM Modi’s government, he said, “Because the entire country knows that the government is being run by the Modi-Adani partnership. Airports and ports have been given, Himachal’s apples have been given, land is being given, railways is also going to be given. I am not a king, PM Modi is. I never want to be one. I am your son, brother but not the king.”
#WATCH | Addressing a public meeting in Haryana’s Mahendragarh, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi says, “…I am not a king, PM Modi is. I never want to be one. I am your son, brother but not the king.” pic.twitter.com/KP2W3RBdkq
— ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2024
Rahul Gandhi Accuses Media Of Being “Friends With Billionaires And Modi Ji”
The Wayanad MP said that the media don’t talk about unemployment, inflation and farmers. “‘Press Ke Mitro’ kehna padhta hai par hai nhi yeh mitra (friends). They are friends of Modiji and Adani ji. I did ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ of thousands of kilometres, where people talked about inflation, unemployment and farmers’ problems. But there was no talk of unemployment, inflation and farmers in the media. But in media only Narendra Modi’s face and Ambani’s wedding were shown.”
For the unversed, Haryana has 10 Lok Sabha constituencies: Ambala, Kurukshetra, Sirsa, Hisar, Karnal, Sonipat, Rohtak, Bhiwani-Mahendragarh, Gurgaon, and Faridabad.
Voting in the Bhiwani-Mahendragarh constituency is scheduled for the sixth phase of the ongoing Lok Sabha election on May 25, with vote counting on June 4. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has nominated Dharambir Singh Chaudhary, while the Congress has put forward Rao Dan Singh as their candidate.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP won 7 out of 10 seats in Haryana, while the Congress did not secure any seats in the state.
ALSO READ: This Is How Many Jobs | The Prime Minister’s Interview
