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  India   All India  13 Sep 2017  Rahul Gandhi in US: India runs on dynasties, why target me?

Rahul Gandhi in US: India runs on dynasties, why target me?

THE ASIAN AGE.
Published : Sep 13, 2017, 1:16 am IST
Updated : Sep 13, 2017, 1:17 am IST

Congress V-P says Modi runs troll army to belittle him.

Cong vice-president Rahul Gandhi attacked PM Modi in his speech at UC Berkeley, California. (Photo: PTI)
 Cong vice-president Rahul Gandhi attacked PM Modi in his speech at UC Berkeley, California. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: All set to take over as Congress chief next month, party vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday went on to defend dynastic politics and attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for mob lynchings and allegedly running an abuse machine to continually target him on social media.

Speaking at the University of California in Berkeley, Mr Gandhi tried to justify his position as heir apparent to the Congress throne by describing dynasties as an accepted reality. India, he said, “runs like this only”.   

Talking of “sons rising”, Mr Gandhi gave examples of Akhilesh Yadav (son of Mulayam Singh Yadav), M.K. Stalin (son of M. Karunanidhi in DMK), Abhishek Bachchan (son of Amitabh Bachchan) and Mukesh and Anil Ambani (sons of Dhirubhai Ambani). And then said, “That’s how the entire country is running. Don’t just go after me.”

While his statement virtually sent friendly outfits like Left parties squirming, the BJP tore the Congress vice-president to shreds for trying to justify dynastic politics.

The Congress, without any sense of irony, jumped to Mr Gandhi’s defence. Party leader Digvijay Singh, infact, referred to the alleged dynasty system within the RSS and pointed out that the RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat is the “son of former RSS Gujarat Prachar Pramukh, Madhukar Rao Bhagwat”.

Speaking on “India at 70: Reflections on the Path Forward” and interacting with students, Mr Gandhi also attacked the Prime Minister over demonetisation, calling it a “self-inflicted wound”.

On lynchings and attacks on liberals, Mr Gandhi said that the “idea of non-violence is under attack in India”.

Responding to the charge of being described as a “reluctant politician”, Mr Gandhi claimed that this was the manufactured “perspective from 1,000 BJP followers sitting on machines only spreading rumours about me”. “All day they spread abuse about me, and the operation is run by the gentleman who is running our country,” Mr Gandhi said.

The Congress leader’s stinging criticism of the PM on a host of issues ranging from demonetisation, GST, attacks on liberal journalists, unrest in Kashmir and “politics of hate” left the BJP fuming.

Union minister Smriti Irani called Mr Gandhi a “failed dynast” and BJP president Amit Shah said the saffron party had ended dynasty politics, forcing “people to go to America and speak”.

Eyebrows were also raised in the Congress as Mr Gandhi, who is expected to replace his mother Sonia Gandhi as party president next month, went on to admit that the party had turned “arrogant” in 2012, two years before the general elections.

Incidentally, Mrs Gandhi was in control of the party during that period and there were no talks of his taking over at that juncture. “Around 2012, arrogance crept into the Congress Party and we stopped having conversations with people,” Mr Gandhi told the students.

On Mr Gandhi’s move to defend dynastic politics, CPI leader D. Raja said that Mr Gandhi should “not have made a generalised comment on dynasty politics”.

She claimed that many India citizens have contributed “in different walks of life not because of their dynasty but because of their merit.”

Speaking of the “humble and poor backgrounds” of President Ram Nath Kovind, vice-president M. Venkaiah Naidu and Prime Minister Modi, Ms Irani argued that these three are leading the nation today on their “own merit” and not because of any dynasty.

She lashed out, “A failed dynast today chose to speak about his failed political journey in the US... The fact that Rahul Gandhi chose to belittle the Prime Minister is not a surprise but expected… It is an indication of his failed strategy. The people of the country where he leads a political party no longer support him so he is expressing his pain abroad.”

Ms Irani said Mr Gandhi had little awareness of the “lack of propriety” in criticising his country on foreign soil as he was driven by “boosting his own image not patriotism”.

Congress leaders Anand Sharma and Randeep Singh Surjewala reminded the BJP of an event when the Prime Minister had “criticised” India during one of his visits to Japan. Mr Surjewala said, “It appears that the BJP is talking about Prime Minister Modi who in his visits abroad claimed that for the past 70 years people were ashamed to be called Indians.”

Toeing a similar line, Mr Sharma said, “It is the present Prime Minister who is guilty of insulting India on foreign soil. It is wrong to accuse Rahul Gandhi of having said anything which is belittling. It again betrays the streak of intolerance and criticism by the BJP and the present government.”

Tags: rahul gandhi, narendra modi, smriti irani, amit shah, dynasties
Location: India, Delhi, New Delhi