Daijiworld Media Network – Bengaluru (DC)
Bengaluru, May 10: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday reacted to the BJP's statement calling him 'election Hindu' and said that BJP does not understand meaning of the term Hindu. "It is perspective and something which lives with you throughout," he said.
Addressing a press conference in Bengaluru, Rahul Gandhi accused BJP of only making personal attacks and lacking a vision for Karnataka. He said that his party fought the campaign on fundamental issues, but the BJP failed to tell the people of the state what it will do for them. He said that the Congress will retain power. "BJP is in a panic mode as Congress will win heads down. There's one outcome to the polls and that is Congress's win. RSS is trying to decimate Kannada pride," he said.
He also reacted to BJP raking up his mother Sonia Gandhi's Italian origin and said, "My mother is more Indian than many Indian people. My mother has sacrificed for this country. She has suffered for this country."
On being targeted by the BJP and Prime Minister (PM) Modi, Rahul said, "Many years ago, Buddha was sitting under a tree. He was abused by people but he said nothing. I attract his anger, but his anger is his (PM's) problem."
He further said, "There is a difference between helping a community, empower them and crushing a community. What BJP is doing with Dalits and minorities is crushing and killing them,"
He also targeted PM Modi over Rafale deal and said, “The deal was good only for the PM and his coterie, his businessmen friends who have never built an aero plane in their life."
Karnataka polls not about me, Modi trying to distract people: Rahul
Under attack from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for declaring his prime ministerial ambitions, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi accused the former of trying to distract voters from issues concerning Karnataka's future, and said the elections were not about him.
Rahul Gandhi was quizzed about Modi's attack on him following his declaration, he said: "As far as PM's remarks are concerned this is Karnataka election. All these remarks are aimed at distracting the voters."
Gandhi had officially thrown his hat into the ring on Tuesday. When asked by the media whether he harboured prime ministerial ambitions, the Congress chief said: "Yes, why not?" If his party emerged as the single-largest party in 2019.
"Modi likes to distract people. This election has nothing to do with Rahul Gandhi. This election is about the future of Karnataka. Narendra Modi has nothing to say about the future of Karnataka. He is therefore distracting.
"I am not going to engage in that distraction," Gandhi said.
During an interaction with eminent citizens in Bengaluru on Tuesday, Gandhi had also said that Modi would not be the Prime Minister again.
Modi on Wednesday dismissed Gandhi's remarks calling him an immature and arrogant "naamdar" (dynast), who does not have confidence in his alliance partners and does not care about Congress' internal democracy.
BJP on personal slander trip, not serious about Karnataka: Rahul
Rahul Gandhi further said the BJP has restricted itself to only mounting personal attacks on him and his party leaders during its Karnataka campaign and lacked seriousness about what they wished to deliver to the people in the state.
"We put up a vision for the state while our opposition restricted itself to making personal attacks at the Chief Minister (Siddaramaiah), (Leader of Congress in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun) Khargeji, and myself and others," Gandhi told the media here.
"They (BJP) have not really named what they want to do for Karnataka. What the Congress wants to do for the state is very very clear.
"We made certain commitments and we delivered on those commitments and now we have prepared a manifesto that is truly the voice of the people here," he added.
Gandhi said senior party leader Veerappa Moily had prepared the manifesto. He criss-crossed the state, held meetings with thousands of people before putting it all together.
"We put forward the essence of what the people are looking for in the next five years," said Gandhi.
The 47-year-old Congress chief said: "In contrast, the Bharatiya Janata Party built its manifesto inside closed doors in three-four days. They copied from ours.
RSS trying to crush Karnataka's spirit: Rahul
Rahul Gandhi accused the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) of trying to crush the spirit of the people of Karnataka and said the Congress will win Saturday's Assembly polls hands down.
Gandhi said that the Karnataka polls were not just between two political parties but between two ideologies.
He alleged that the RSS was imposing its idea of oneness and was against the people of Karnataka to express themselves.
"There is an idea in India that says the entire country must be ruled with one idea, one imposition and everybody must submit to that idea. That is what RSS is trying to do. Institution after institution is being attacked by the RSS," he said.
"Supreme Court judges for the first time are asking people for justice. The reason for this is because the RSS is placing its people everywhere. My friends in Karnataka listen to this carefully. The idea is to crush your spirit. We will never ever allow your spirit and ideas of Basavanna to be crushed," he said
The Congress President also ruled out the possibility of a hung assembly in the state.
"I am pretty clear that there is going to be one outcome here which is the Congress party winning the elections hands down," Gandhi said.
"On one side you have the RSS idea of one concept in the whole country. On the other, you have an idea that every single person in the country should be able to express himself, that all my friends in Karnataka should have pride in their language, in their food. That is what this fight has become. There is no half-way answer possible in this," he noted.
Gandhi said the media had estimated only a few seats to Congress in Gujarat but the party came very close to defeating the BJP whose campaign was spearheaded by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"In Gujarat, my friends in the media said Congress will not get more than 20-30 seats. Congress came very close to defeating BJP. The Prime Minister put whatever effort he could," he added.
"So, there is a lack of seriousness among them about what they want to deliver... That I think is a huge difference."
"I am very confident that the Congress party is going to win the election," Gandhi added.
Gandhi, who finished his ninth leg of campaigning for the May 12 polls on Thursday, said: "I have now been travelling around Karnataka for a couple of months.
"It has been an honour... I have learned a tremendous amount from the people of the state, from their spirit, from their perspective."
"The Congress party has fought a very good campaign, we have all stood together, our party is completely united and we fought the campaign on fundamental issues," he added.
With IANS Inputs