- Saturday, May 18, 2024
The PM took a dig at the opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, indirectly suggesting that the latter’s party was unsuccessfully trying to launch him time and again.
By: Shubham Ghosh
INDIAN prime minister Narendra Modi on Monday (5) launched a scathing attack on the opposition Indian National Congress and particularly its leader Rahul Gandhi saying the latter’s ‘dukaan’ (shop) is shutting down since it was launching the “same product over and over”.
Speaking the parliament in the budget session, Modi took a swipe at Gandhi’s often-used “mohabbat ki dukaan” (shop of love) terminology to counter the “nafrat ki bazaar” (market of hate) which he and his party accuse Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of spreading, saying the main opposition party’s shop was not going anywhere since it was launching the ‘same product’ — an indirect dig at Gandhi.
The Congress, despite finding little electoral success under Gandhi, its former president, has continued to operate under his leadership, inviting criticism and ridicule. The grand-old party fought the 2014 and 2019 general elections under the 53-year-old Gandhi’s stewardship besides a number of state polls but tasted very little success.
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Modi also targeted the Congress and the Gandhi family, which has been at the centre of its operations for several decades now, saying it is the opposition party which is responsible for the state of the opposition. He accused the Congress of not allowing other parties to perform and ruining the parliament, opposition and even the country.
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“I believe the country needs a strong Opposition. The country has faced the ramifications of dynasty politics, and the Congress has faced it too,” Modi said.
The PM also cited the exit of veteran leader Ghulam Nabi Azad from the party, saying it happened because of the party’s dynastic politics.
“Efforts to launch the same product again and again are shutting down the Congress’s dukaan,” he said.
Modi also told the opposition that ‘dukaan’ is not a term that he is using but invented by them.
In another dig at Gandhi, Modi said the Congress had recently learnt the work of an automobile mechanic — making an apparent reference to the Congress leader’s recent visit to a two-wheeler repair shop in Delhi. He mocked the opposition party over the troubles in its INDIA (Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance) bloc saying while the mechanic’s work taught the Congress the meaning of alignment, the alignment in the alliance was not okay.
Recently, Nitish Kumar, a key leader from the eastern state of Bihar, left the INDIA, reportedly due to dissatisfaction over the Congress’s style of working.
Modi defended his colleagues — defence minister Rajnath Singh and home minister Amit Shah — when the opposition also accused them of dynasticism since the former’s son is a lawmaker in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh MLA and the latter’s is the secretary of the Indian cricket board.
“When a family runs a party and preference is given to a family, that is parivaarvaad (dynasticism). Rajnath Singh, Amit Shah do not run a party. For the country’s democracy, dynasty politics is a cause of concern. If two or 10 people from a family progress, I respect that, but here a family runs a party,” he said.
Modi also accused the Congress of resorting to a “cancel culture” and mindlessly criticising every move his government makes.
“The Congress is stuck in a cancel culture. It says cancel to Make in India, Vocal for Local, Vande Bharat. I’m surprised. There’s so much hate that the country’s achievements are getting cancelled,” Modi said.
