New Delhi: Reiterating the Congress’s promise of a caste census and lifting the 50 per cent cap on reservation, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday lambasted the BJP and the RSS while participating in the special discussion on the Constitution, marking its 75th anniversary. He hit out at the ruling party, saying that Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar had said that there was “nothing Indian about the Constitution”. The Leader of the Opposition claimed that when BJP members speak about the Constitution, they defame Savarkar.
“In front of us stand people who follow a very different philosophy. I want to start my speech by quoting what the supreme leader…not of the BJP…but of the modern interpretation of the ideas of the RSS about the Constitution of India. The worst thing about the Constitution is that there is nothing Indian about it. Manusmriti is that scripture which is most worship-able after Vedas of our Hindu nation… This book has for centuries codified the spiritual and divine march of our nation. Today, Manusmriti is law. These are the words of Savarkar,” the leader said.
‘Will breach the wall of 50% reservation’
He went on to promise that his party would breach ‘the wall of 50% reservation. “…we will have a Caste Census. You can say whatever you want,” he told the BJP-led NDA.
#WATCH | During discussion on 75th anniversary of adoption of the Constitution of India, Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi says, “We will breach the wall of 50% reservation and we will have a Caste Census. You can say whatever you want.” pic.twitter.com/99304jLkPe
— ANI (@ANI) December 14, 2024
He stated that the ideology of INDIA Alliance brought the Constitution of the country and together the alliance safeguards the Constitution. “Ambedkar ji had said that if there is political equality but no social and economic equality, political equality will be destroyed…Today, it is before everyone. Political equality has ended. All of India’s institutions have been captured. There is no more a social equality. There is no economic equality anymore. That is why, our next step would be Caste Census. We want to show the country that whose thumbs did you chop off. We want to show Dalits, Adivasis, Backwards, farmers, labourers whose thumbs have been chopped off. So, we will have a Caste Census and there will be a new kind of development in India,” he added.
“Wherever you go, you pit one religion against the other…”
Referring to the Sambhal violence over the survey of a mosque, he blamed the BJP of playing communal politics. “Constitution mentions the prohibition of discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth…Some days back, youngsters from Sambhal came to see me. 5 innocent people who had done nothing and were just nearby were shot dead. Where is it written in the Constitution?…Wherever you go, you pit one religion against the other. You spread hatred. Where is it written in Constitution that one religion has to be pitted against the other, that a Dalit family has to be locked up and criminals have to be allowed to feely roam around? Where is it written in the Constitution? Show me,” he added.
#WATCH | During discussion on 75th anniversary of adoption of the Constitution of India, Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi says, “The ideology of INDIA Alliance brought the Constitution of the country, together we safeguard the Constitution. Ambedkar ji had said that if there is… pic.twitter.com/ykHnqfulwd
— ANI (@ANI) December 14, 2024
‘Farmers demand suitable price, you give profits to Adani’
He also attacked the BJP government over Agniveer and paper leak issues. “…When you implemented Agniveer, you cut off the thumb of the youth. When you have paper leaks – you had 70 paper leaks, you cut off the thumb of the youth of India…Today, you lobbed tear gas shells on farmers outside Delhi, you unleashed lathi charge on the farmers. Farmers demand MSP from you. They demand a suitable price. But you facilitate profits to Adani, Ambani and cut off the thumb of farmers. We sav Abhayamudra, we say “daro matt”. You say, “Hum aapka angootha kaat denge.” This is the difference,” he said.
