Crisis exposed true face of BJP: Rahul Gandhi

Escalating his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said the Uttarakhand crisis has exposed the “true face of Modiji’s BJP” and that “toppling” governments by “blatant use of money” seems to be the ruling party’s new model.

Mr Gandhi took to Twitter to target the ruling party at the Centre over the political crisis in the hill state and declared that the Congress would fight this “demagoguery with democracy”.

“Toppling elected governments by indulging in horse trading and blatant misuse of money and muscle, seems to be BJP’s new model after failure in Bihar,” Mr Gandhi said.

“The Congress party will fight demagoguery with democracy. This attack on our democracy and Constitution, first in Arunachal and now in Uttarakhand, is the true face of Modiji”s BJP,” he said in a series of tweets.

Senior Congess leader Ahmed Patel said in a tweet: “Muscle and money power is being used to topple Congress governments. We have faith in our Constitution and shall defeat their devious design.”

The Congress government in Uttarkhand, led by Harish Rawat, plunged into a crisis two days back with nine party MLAs turning rebels and the Opposition BJP approaching the governor, staking claim to form the government.

Governor Krishna Kant Paul had on Saturday asked Mr Rawat to prove his majority on the floor of the state Assembly by March 28.

The governor’s directive to the CM came even as the BJP, claiming majority with the support of nine rebel Congress MLAs in the 70-member Assembly, stepped up efforts to form its government, contending that the Rawat ministry has been reduced to a minority.

While the BJP claimed the support of 35 MLAs, including the rebel Congress legislators, Mr Rawat said he still enjoys a majority in the Assembly as none of the rebel MLAs have quit the party or the CLP. He also said that five of the rebels were in touch with him.

Assembly Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal had said the “anti-defection law is in place and whoever is found guilty of violating it will have to be acted against”.

“All Congress MLAs voted with the government when the previous bill was passed in the Assembly and nobody had challenged the bill. Even the BJP accepts the voice vote,” he said.