HUBBALLI: Former Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Saturday said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was perturbed by the Bharat Jodo Yatra, led by Rahul Gandhi, as it was carried out against ‘those spreading hatred.’ She campaigned for all six party candidates in Dharwad, including Jagadish Shettar, who switched from BJP after being denied a ticket.
Addressing an election rally in Hubballi, Sonia Gandhi said the Bharat Jodo Yatra was taken out against those people who are spreading hatred in the country. “The Bharat Jodo Yatra was taken out against people who do only one work, which is spreading hatred. Such people can never bring any development in Karnataka. The BJP got perturbed by Bharat Jodo Yatra”, Sonia said.
She alleged that the BJP leaders never answer any questions. “They (BJP) think democratic principles are in their pockets. Does democracy work like this?” she added. The former Congress president also alleged that BJP leaders give open threats like if the party loses the elections, then Karnataka will not get PM Modi’s ‘blessings’.
“Without getting rid of the kind of atmosphere created by the loot, lies, arrogance and hatred of the BJP government, neither Karnataka nor the country can progress. These people give threats openly that if BJP loses the election, then Karnataka will not get PM Modi’s blessings. I want to tell them that Karnataka’s people are not so cowardly and greedy, but trust their hard work and stand for their ideals. According to the BJP, the people’s future is dependent on the blessings of the government”, Sonia said.
“Karnataka revolutionised the IT industry, milk production and the industrial sector. The people of Chikkamagaluru supported the Congress party when it was going through a bad phase. Similarly, you have raised the Congress party by supporting me in Ballari. The business of people who are in power now is looting. This became mafia now. They looted the state by coming to power unscrupulous means. They are thick-skinned people, who do not answer questions raised in the House”, Sonia said, slamming the BJP government.
“The future is decided by the people. People’s future is not built by political leaders. The BJP spreads hatred among people in the land where Kuvempu and Basavanna were born”, she added.
She alleged, BJP is creating hatred among people and encouraging communal riots for the sake of power. “The Congress party is the only one that is suitable for the development of people. Our government has fulfilled the promises made to the people of Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan. The BJP government has looted Karnataka in the last three years. The Congress party needs to win if Karnataka is to develop”, Sonia Gandhi said, while requesting voters to strengthen the party by voting for Jagadish Shettar.
Sonia Gandhi has not campaigned in any state elections in the recent past. The former Congress president held her last election rally in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in her parliamentary constituency Rae Bareli. She gave a speech at the Bharat Bachao rally at Delhi’s Ramlila Maidan on December 14, 2019.
Karnataka has a long connection with the Nehru-Gandhi family and has been a “comeback territory” in the past. Indira Gandhi made a political comeback from Chikmagalur in a bypoll in 1978. Sonia Gandhi also fought from Ballari in her debut election in which she was also in the fray from Amethi.
Karnataka is crucial for Congress as it can mark its revival for the 2024 Lok Sabha election. If BJP is defeated in Karnataka, the saffron party will not be in power in any southern state.
With Rahul Gandhi having been disqualified from Lok Sabha following his conviction in a criminal defamation case and the election debacles Congress faced in 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Congress is pinning strong hopes on Karnataka where it has strong state leadership.
The party feels that a win in Karnataka will give it a massive boost to take on Prime Minister Narendra Modi before the 2024 general elections and emerge as a fulcrum of opposition unity. Rahul Gandhi has so far held 17 rallies and roadshows in Karnataka, while his sister Priyanka Gandhi has done 19 rallies. (With Agency inputs)