Launching a scathing attack on Narendra Modi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said the Prime Minister might be a good orator but he was emerging as a “dictator” and asked his party to stand up and fight against the “dictatorship”. Kharge also alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as a Lok Sabha MP was linked to a meeting the PM had with the Speaker. Inaugurating the Vaikom Satyagraha centenary celebrations organised by the Congress in Kottayam, Kerala, Kharge said India “stands at a crossroads today” as the very foundation of the country’s democracy is being attacked daily by those in power. Kharge attacked the PM over the Adani issue, accusing him of shielding the tycoon and spoke at length about Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification. He said the disqualification was the darkest day in the history of Indian democracy. “There are various legal issues in the judgment of the trial court. However, those will be dealt with at an appropriate forum by our legal team,” he said. “However, the BJP government’s manipulations in the matter must be pointed out. If we see the timeline of the whole case, it couldn’t be clearer than that the Modi government deliberately allowed this exercise to play out,” he said. Kharge said in March 2022 the complainant himself had sought a stay on his complaint from the Gujarat High Court, but withdrew “his own request for a stay” days after Gandhi’s speech in Lok Sabha, “exposing the Modi-Adani nexus”. “Within a matter of 20-25 days, the case is restarted, the hearing is completed, and Gandhi is handed out the maximum punishment of two years. On the same day, Modi ji meets the Lok Sabha Speaker. And then the country witnessed what happened. We must look at the lightning speed at which Gandhi was disqualified and asked to vacate his official residence. Such actions are indeed condemnable, which are destroying the democratic norms of our country and pushing us towards a dictatorial regime,” he said. Kharge added that the “case was filed by an individual who himself is not an OBC”. “None of the absconders who were named — Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi and Mehul Choksi — are OBCs. But the BJP is trying to build up false propaganda of ‘so-called’ insult to the OBCs. This is all being done to distract the public attention from the real issue of BJP’s corruption and the loot of public money. What was the hurry [for conviction] when the trial court itself gave one month for appeal? This reflects Modi's brutal vindictiveness,” he said. Kharge alleged the “action” was taken against Rahul Gandhi because he had asked some questions to the PM about his alleged relationship with industrialist Gautam Adani. “For the sake of saving his friend, Modi is ready to sacrifice everything — our Parliament, democracy, Indian Constitution — it does not matter. Can you believe, the complete Budget session of Parliament is being washed out just to save one person — Adani? All BJP leaders — Cabinet Ministers, PM — are working overtime to save Adani,” he said. Reciting a quotation by Irish patriot Daniel O'Connell that “no man can be grateful at the cost of his honour, no woman can be grateful at the cost of her chastity, and no nation can be grateful at the cost of its liberty”, Kharge said, “Therefore, we have to protect our democracy… Whosoever may be, however great a man may be, however good a speaker he may be, you remember he is emerging as a dictator. You have to stand up, save democracy and fight against the dictatorship.” Since Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification on March 24, the Congress has been trying to bring together the Opposition by linking the action taken against its leader and the demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani episode. By doing this, the Congress believes it can portray both issues as part of a larger attempt by the BJP to silence the Opposition.
