– Abdul Bari Masoud
New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday challenged AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal to commit to conducting a caste census and removing the 50% cap on reservations.
Addressing a massive public gathering in Bawana in support of Congress candidates, Gandhi accused both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Kejriwal of being opposed to reservations.
He dared Kejriwal to publicly announce his support for lifting the reservation cap, asserting that he would never do so because he is against reservations, Dalits, and minorities.
Drawing parallels between Modi and Kejriwal, Gandhi alleged that Kejriwal deceives people just as the PM does. He criticised Kejriwal for failing to deliver on his promise of clean politics, accusing him and his party of being embroiled in Delhi’s largest corruption scandal.
Gandhi also recalled Kejriwal’s five-year-old promise to bathe in and drink water from the Yamuna River, challenging him to do so now, knowing that the river remains heavily polluted.
Referring to the 2020 Delhi riots, Gandhi accused Kejriwal of abandoning minorities in their time of need. He claimed that while BJP supporters unleashed violence, Kejriwal was nowhere to be seen, whereas Congress leaders, including himself, stood by the victims.
Reaffirming his vision for India, Gandhi emphasised that the country stands for love and harmony, not hatred and fear. He accused Modi and the RSS of orchestrating divisions by pitting religions, castes, and linguistic groups against each other.
Addressing pressing economic concerns, he lamented the lack of job opportunities in Delhi under Modi and Kejriwal’s governance. He highlighted how parents spend vast sums on their children’s education, only for them to receive certificates instead of employment.
As an example, he recalled meeting a civil engineering graduate who was working as a coolie at the Delhi railway station. He criticized the government for controlling the narrative so effectively that mainstream media ignores real issues affecting ordinary people, instead diverting public attention elsewhere.
Gandhi asserted that, unlike BJP and AAP, Congress does not make false promises. He pointed to Karnataka and Telangana, where the party has fulfilled its commitments after forming governments.
