A Congress delegation led by vice-president Rahul Gandhi (second from right), with Mallikarjun Kharge (from left), Ajay Maken, Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma, after meeting President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Thursday. (Photo: G.N. Jha)
A Congress delegation led by vice-president Rahul Gandhi (second from right), with Mallikarjun Kharge (from left), Ajay Maken, Sachin Pilot, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Anand Sharma, after meeting President Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi on Thursday. (Photo: G.N. Jha)
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday lauded the late Kanshi Ram for working for the upliftment of dalits but, at the same time, criticised Ms Mayawati and the BSP for not allowing dalit leadership to emerge.
Mr Gandhi, who was addressing a dalit conclave at the UPCC headquarters here, said, “There is a difference between Kanshi Ramji and Mayawati and the BSP. Kanshi Ram did a lot for dalits but Mayawati did not take it forward. She did not allow the dalit leadership to emerge in her party and she also tried to crush the youth among dalits.”
He said that Ms Mayawati likes to keep all the power in her hands and does not decentralise it.
He said that some people became restive when he visited dalit homes and shared a meal with them. “They call it a ‘natak’ but they do not know that a true Congressman feels the pain of the poor in his heart,” he said.
Mr Gandhi said that the Congress wants to give a chance to the youth among dalits to emerge and take power in their hands.
“The youth should have the power to chart their own destiny and we are ready to give power to the dalit youth to do so because you have not got what you deserved — not only in UP but not in other states either. I believe that every community should allow its own leaders to develop and come up,” he said.
Citing the case of Rohith Vemula, Mr Gandhi said, “It was not a suicide. Rohith was killed by the government of India that crushed him and drove him to end his life. I went to Hyderabad and spoke to his friends. All that Rohith wanted was to speak out and express the pain in his heart but was not allowed to do so,” he stated.
Mr Gandhi said that weaker sections should be given greater representation in colleges, schools, bureaucracy and every sphere of society but this is not happening.
“Vice-chancellors are from RSS background and they are trying to impose their views on the youth. The BJP is turning health and education into a business. If Patels are not getting their due in Gujarat, you can imagine what the Gujarat model is all about,” he said.
He said that the Congress during its regime had tried to introduce pro-poor programmes like RTE, RTI, MNREGA and Food Security. “These programmes were for weaker and poor sections and not for any one or two castes. The BJP is trying to end these programmes but we will fight them out. Mr Modi says that MNREGA that helps the poor, is a mistake though his finance minister tells me that this is one of the best programmes,” he said.
Emphasising on dalit unity, Mr Gandhi asked the participants to bring dalit youths into the Congress fold and help in strengthening the party. “You will see the change within one year. We have recently won a byelection and we will soon form the government too,” he said.
Mr Gandhi’s statement was rebutted by Ms Mayawati who issued a statement saying that the Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s participation in a ‘Dalit Conclave’ seems to be an attempt to fool the people. “After engaging in all anti-Dalit works, organising ‘Dalit Conclave’ seems like an attempt to befool the people”, she said.
