New Delhi: The Congress on Tuesday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his remarks on the party in Karnataka and said the latter should raise issues concerning the people of the state.
“The PM should talk about issues when he is in Karnataka. He should talk about the 40 per cent commission government. He has to talk about paper leakages in Karnataka. Instead he chooses to talk about that…….. The more he attacks our leadership, the greater our resolve is to fight him,” Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate said at a press conference at the party headquarters here, in an apparent reference to PM’s Monday’s statement in Belagavi.
She added, “I saw what the PM said in Karnataka yesterday . With every passing day, Mr Modi is reducing the little bit of respect , dignity left to an office that he has held for nine years now . He is India’s PM when he talks about Mr Kharge, who have 50 years of legislative experience , he does not disgrace Mr Kharge , he also insults the people who have elected him.”
“The Congress parliamentary chief Mrs Gandhi (Sonia), who was ailing, was advised against going against the sun, dust,” Shrinate said referring to Modi’s veiled attack on Sonia.
“In that programme (Chhatisgarh’s Raipur ) Kharge ji, the oldest person in politics, was present there and who is also the president of that party. It was sunny. It was natural for the people who were standing there to feel sunburned. But in that sun, Kharge ji who is the oldest and most senior Congress leader didn’t get lucky having an umbrella.
The umbrella was set up for someone else. This tells that Kharge ji is the president of the Congress, but the whole world is watching the way he is being treated in the Congress. Seeing it, the whole world is also watching that in whose hands is the remote control,” the PM said on Monday.
Shrinate further added, “There are multiple videos that I can actually put out showing how senior leaders within the BJP are ill treated. Some are put in comma the moment they pass 75 years. I wonder if it will happen to Mr Modi.”
Talking about the recent Congress’ 85th plenary session, the spokesperson said, “Raipur ‘Hath Se Hath Jodo’ plenary has set the agenda for 2024 (Lok Sabha elections).”
“Congress party is the only party that has never compromised with the BJP/RSS and its despicable politics. Our leaders have openly expressed our willingness to work with like-minded political parties to preserve and protect the Constitution of India and to address economic inequality, crony capitalism, deepening political dictatorship and divisive agenda of the BJP,” she said.
Shrinate said, “The upcoming state elections in Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram, Rajasthan and Telangana – will be fought with vigour and our victory will set the tone for the general elections next year.”
The commitment of the Congress is for a stronger “united India”, she asserted.
