http://RSS-BJP trying to impose culture of silence in India: Rahul Gandhi
Expresses confidence about UDF forming next government in state
Addresses newly elected local body representatives
Stresses need to provide jobs, opportunities to youth in Kerala
MGNREGA being targeted as Centre doesn’t want to devolve financial & decision-making powers to third tier of govt: Rahul Gandhi
Sandhyamidday@Newdelhi/KOCHI@Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday said the RSS and the BJP were trying to impose a “culture of silence” in the country so that people have no voice. He said the Congress was fighting a political battle in the state, while at the same time it was waging an ideological battle at the national level against the ideology of the RSS and the BJP.
Addressing newly elected members of gram, block and district panchayats, municipalities and municipal corporations here, Gandhi congratulated them and said they were duty-bound to protect the Constitution at the grassroots level. He pointed out that panchayats and other local bodies formed the foundation of the three-tier system of democracy.
“If we want to protect the Constitution and ensure that it survives, we have to protect the third tier, that is panchayats and other local bodies,” he said, adding that the idea behind the 73rd and 74th Constitutional Amendments, which empowered local bodies, belonged to the Congress.
Asserting that there was a clear difference between the RSS-BJP and the Congress, he said while the former believed in centralisation, the Congress believed in decentralisation. He added that the RSS and the BJP want blind compliance from the people of India; they do not want to hear their voices.
Referring to his conversation with noted writer Dr Leelavathy after presenting her with the Priyadarshini Literary Award, Gandhi said she had spoken about the growing culture of silence and how it was spreading across the country. He said the ideological agenda of the RSS-BJP was designed to create such a culture. “They want India to remain silent and not express itself because they want to deliver all the wealth of India to a few select businessmen,” he said, adding that this would be possible only if the democratic voice of the people was silenced.
However, he asserted that nobody could silence the voice of the people of Kerala.
Expressing confidence that the UDF would win the forthcoming Assembly elections in the state, Gandhi said the next government would need to focus on providing jobs and opportunities to the youth.
He said he was proud of the achievements of people from Kerala across the world. At the same time, he said that the UDF government would create an atmosphere in which the youth of Kerala could achieve similar success within the state.
Recalling his long association with Kerala as an MP, Gandhi said he had learnt a great deal from the people of the state.
“I am telling you with all humility that I have learnt tremendously from the people of Kerala,” he said.
“Your history, tradition, language and political depth, and most importantly, your ability to stand together despite differences in religion and culture, have shown me how this is done,” he said, drawing applause.
Later, while interacting with the people present on the occasion, Rahul Gandhi said that the recent changes to MGNREGA by the Modi government amounted to an attack on the rights of India’s poor people. Criticising the manner in which the scheme was being revoked, he said that MGNREGA transformed the lives of millions of the country’s poorest people but was now being systematically weakened as the Modi government did not want to pay minimum wages to labourers. He added that another reason that MGNREGA was being targeted was the Centre’s reluctance to devolve financial and decision-making powers to the third tier of government. He said that the Modi government wants the country to be run from Delhi. He also recalled that the Prime Minister had once ridiculed MGNREGA in the Lok Sabha, but the scheme provided crucial support to people during the COVID period.
Those present on the occasion included Congress general secretary (organisation) K C Venugopal, Deepa Dasmunshi, Sachin Pilot and others.
