Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday asked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to disclose details of his foreign trips to the public, saying they have a right know since he was the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha.
“You just returned from Vietnam, but you don’t talk about that. There should be transparency… Rahul ji, please give the public an account of all your foreign trips. How many days did you stay in Vietnam, whom did you meet, why did you go there, what was the programme…” Shah said at a ‘Loktantra Bachao, Arajakta Hatao’ rally of the BJP here. “You hold a constitutional position. The public has a right to know since you are the leader of the opposition (in Lok Sabha),” Shah added.
The home minister also asked Gandhi that if he believed all electronic voting machines (EVMs) are flawed, why did his party legislators take oath in Kerala after winning the polls using the same machines. He also cited Telangana and Himachal Pradesh where the Congress is in power. “Rahul ji, there is a saying in Uttar Pradesh: ‘Naach na aaye aangan tedha’. People of the country no longer accept you, admit it,” Shah said. He also said that people are wondering if pressing issues should be discussed on roads or in Parliament.
“Rahul ji, if you are so fond of holding discussions on roads, we have no objection. You ask Modi ji for a debate, you say ‘Tell me a venue’… Leave Modi ji aside. Pick a roundabout in Haryana, the president of our Yuva Morcha will debate with you,” Shah said. “If you want to have a responsible and meaningful discussion, let’s debate inside Parliament. But I know that you won’t, and like always, you will run away,” he said.
The home minister also called upon the BJP workers to visit every house in Haryana and expose the Congress and its allies’ “conspiracy” to defame the election process and tell people the truth about the SIR exercise.
“The Election Commission granted every political party permission to appoint a booth level agent (BLA). What were the Congress BLAs doing when the the poll panel was conducting the SIR?” he said. Taking potshots at alleged infighting in Haryana Congress, Shah said, “Their BLAs were busy in the Hooda-Selja ‘kushti’. They never helped the voters.” Shah also asked Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to learn how to run a government from Haryana. “Farmers in Punjab are fighting for MSP. I want tell Bhagwant Mann ji, learn from Haryana how to run a government. Our chief minister (Nayab SIngh) Saini gave MSP on 24 crops. No one has any complaints here.”
Targeting the Congress over its “guarantees” in states where it is in power, Shah claimed it gave 10 guarantees in Himachal Pradesh, but did not fullfil even one. “In Haryana, all the guarantees given by Modi ji have been fulfilled for which and I want to thank the chief minister,” he said. Citing recent World Bank data, Shah said under Modi’s leadership, 50 crore people have come out of poverty in India. “In 12 years, 81 crore people received free ration, while 49 crore people received free medical treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh. We delivered tap water to 16 crore homes, provided the Kisan Samman Nidhi to 13 crore farmers, built 12 crore toilets,” he claimed.
“Indira Gandhi had given the slogan ‘Garibi Hatao’. But poverty was not eradicated. Rajiv Gandhi came to power promising to end corruption, but multiple scams like Bofors took place. During the 10-year UPA rule, scams and scandals worth Rs 12 lakh crore occurred,” Shah alleged. Digging Rahul Gandhi’s past records, Shah said he became the Congress general secretary in 2007. “At that time, the party had 1,200 MLAs. When he became the Congress vice-president, the count dropped to 900. When he became the president, it dropped further to 700. And when he launched the Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022, it went down from 700 to 600. “On the other hand, the number of BJP MLAs and MPs has risen consistently ever since Modi ji took charge. Yet, all you do is blame the EVM,” Shah said.