Journalism of Courage
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said he was glad to see the response that his Bharat Jodo Yatra, which is on its 42nd day, had received in Andhra Pradesh and that his party was committed to fulfilling the promises made when the state was bifurcated in 2014.
Gandhi, who on Tuesday met some farmers who had given their land for a new capital in Amaravati, said the state should have only one capital. “I stand by the farmers of Amaravati and will fight for them,’’ he said, adding that the Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSRCP government’s proposal to have three capitals was under legal scrutiny.
Gandhi said he had also met people affected by the Polavaram project and assured them of help. The Congress would also announce a special package for the Rayalaseema region, which was promised during the 2014 bifurcation, which gave birth to the Telangana state.
Gandhi said the Congress was the only secular and democratic party in the country and that the Bharat Jodo Yatra was aimed at uniting the country when it was being divided along religious lines.
Gandhi lambasted the BJP and said it had three objectives. “The first is to maintain the caste hierarchy and to eventually kill the Indian Constitution, to make sure Indian women are always subservient, and to divide India along religious lines. The Congress views are diametrically opposite. We protect the Constitution, we protest the rights of women, and we bring communities and religions together,” he said, adding that this was what the party’s yatra was also doing. “Because people are asking why there is violence, why there is hate, why there are killings, why we should hate each other. These questions are being asked as a result of the Bharat Jodo Yatra.”
To a question on the goods and services tax, Gandhi said his party was against the basic design of the GST. “The Congress had proposed a single, simplified tax after having a conversation with all the stakeholders, However, the BJP imposed it on the country without discussing with anyone, and it is very complex and they have forced five different tax regimes on the people. There is no GST (elsewhere) in the world with five different levels. We will bring one simple tax: one GST, one tax. We will do so after a conversation with all the stakeholders. And we are confident that we will have a GST that actually simplifies people’s lives,’’ he said.
On whether Congress would seek the support of the YSRCP to form a government at the Centre, Gandhi said he did not decide the party’s alliances.
The Congress leader resumed his yatra in the morning from the Chagi village, where he camped last night. He reached Adoni Arts and Science College for a break, and the yatra was to resume at 4pm and proceed to Areka.
