‘Attempt to hide failure of INDIA bloc rally’: BJP slams Rahul Gandhi over Punjab remarks
New Delhi, Nov 4 (IANS) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday lashed out at Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, saying that the latter’s remarks against the Centre in Punjab are an “attempt to hide the failure” of INDIA bloc’s ‘Dilli Chalo’ rally.
Earlier in the day, the LoP addressed a rally in Sangrur, Punjab, where he criticised Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
“Amit Shah has announced a deadline to eradicate drugs. What deadline has he given? Three years? In three years, Amit Shah may not even be the Home Minister. I don’t know what he is talking about. My assessment is that the government itself will fall within a year,” Rahul Gandhi said.
Reacting to the same, BJP National Spokesperson and MP Sudhanshu Trivedi said: “Rahul Gandhi, perhaps you do not understand what determination means or how a resolve is turned into reality.”
Addressing a press conference, the BJP spokesperson cited the elimination of Naxalism from the country, following the March 31, 2026 deadline set by HM Shah.
“Not only has it been eliminated, but the past 12 months have also marked the first time in 47 years that there has not been a single CRPF casualty in a year,” he underlined.
Targeting the LoP, Trivedi further said: “You were the one who said in 2011 that controlling terrorism was completely impossible. Today, India has succeeded in curbing terrorism so effectively that it has been eliminated from almost the entire country, except for three to four districts in South Kashmir.”
“Your every prediction has proved wrong. You had written off LIC, but it is now recording all-time high profits. You said the State Bank of India was finished, but it is also posting all-time high profits. You claimed HAL had been ruined, but it too is reporting record profits. You also made baseless remarks about vaccines. That is why the Congress should decide whether a peculiar and frustrated leader with an unstable mind can lead the party’s battle in the future,” he added.
He alleged that Rahul Gandhi is making such remarks “in order to hide the failure” of the INDIA bloc’s ‘Dilli Chalo’ rally, held on Sunday at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan.
“The language Rahul Gandhi used during his visit to Punjab is an insult to the people of India. It also once again makes it clear that all those opposed to Lord Ram had gathered at Ramlila Maidan, where they echoed the voices of anti-national forces. It was merely a cheap tactic to divert attention from their massive failure,” he alleged.
Further, Sudhanshu Trivedi also criticised the LoP for his ‘debate challenge’ to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He asserted that according to the Constitution, the Parliament has been decided upon as the “supreme institution” for debates.
“If someone is an LoP and still opposes holding debates in Parliament, it is an insult to the Constitution and its principles. Through this, you are mocking the other Members of Parliament as well as those who have voted for you,” he said.
Citing past instances of PM Modi’s speeches in Parliament, he told Rahul Gandhi, “You have a tendency to run away whenever the Prime Minister begins speaking, like when he was speaking on the situation in Manipur.”
“I would also like to humbly remind Rahul Gandhi that Narendra Modi has been the unanimously elected leader of the NDA for 12 years, whereas you are not the leader of the INDIA bloc. There is no entity called the INDIA bloc in either the Lok Sabha or the Rajya Sabha,” Trivedi added.
Taking a jibe, the BJP leader said: “You recently organised a ‘mock Parliament’ to appease yourself and satisfy your ego, just as courtiers once used to arrange things to please their kings. Similarly, you can conduct a mock debate for yourself.”
He noted that there were no opposing views even at a symbolic “public impeachment” event, organised against the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), saying: “No debates were held even there…We believe in the tradition of debates in India, not you.”
Accusing the LoP of “mocking” democracy and the Constitution, Trivedi remarked that Rahul Gandhi challenging PM Modi for a debate is “mockery of Parliament”.
–IANS
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