Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should apologise not only for the collapse of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj’s statue in Sindhudurg district but also for demonetisation, anti-farmer bills and GST. Gandhi said Modi should apologise to every citizen of Maharashtra for the insult to the great 17th century warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj when his statue collapsed at Rajkot Fort on August 26.
Congress leader Gandhi was addressing a public meeting in Sangli after unveiling a life-size statue of the party’s late leader Patangrao Kadam. After the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP government in Maharashtra was criticised over the collapse of Shivaji Maharaj’s statue, Prime Minister Modi had said during his visit to the state that he apologised to the great king, his “god” and those whose sentiments were hurt.
Gandhi said, “I want to ask the Prime Minister what he has apologised for, is it because the contract to build the Shivaji statue was given to an RSS man who had no eligibility or for the corruption in the process.” The Congress leader said Modi should answer why all contracts are given only to “Adani and Ambani” and why he is running the government for only “two persons”.
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He said the prime minister has not apologised for the “anti-farmer laws” which were later withdrawn due to protests. He demanded that Modi apologise for demonetisation and the “wrong” GST. Gandhi alleged that Modi did not visit Manipur, which is facing a civil war-like situation as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) itself has set the northeastern state on fire. He alleged that small and medium businesses were being destroyed for the benefit of “two persons”. He said the Adani and Ambani groups cannot create jobs. Rahul Gandhi, MP from Rae Bareli, said late Patangrao Kadam dedicated his life to the Congress party, Maharashtra and the country and worked for development and spread of education.
Gandhi said that even when Indira Gandhi lost the Lok Sabha elections, Kadam stood by her and even organised a public meeting at 2 am. He said Maharashtra has always been a progressive state and Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Chhatrapati Shahuji Maharaj, Dr BR Ambedkar and Mahatma Jyotirao Phule showed the progressive path from which everyone draws inspiration. “The ideology of these great personalities is similar to the ideology of the Congress. Maharashtra has the foundation and DNA of the Congress ideology. Today’s politics is a battle between two ideologies. We want social progress and want to take everyone along, while the BJP wants development of a select few,” he said.
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The opposition leader alleged that the BJP wants the caste structure to remain as it is, abolish the Constitution, take over the Election Commission, educational institutions, the legal system and the bureaucracy. “The only qualification to join these institutions is that you should be from the RSS,” he said. Reiterating his demand for a caste census, he said it will reveal how many people are in different social strata and what is their share in the country’s wealth and decision-making.
He said, “But the BJP said no. Now the RSS has said that caste census is necessary… Congress and ‘India’ alliance will ensure that caste census is done at any cost. We need to understand the truth as to who benefits from the wealth of the country.” On Modi’s apology in the Shivaji statue demolition case, Gandhi said Patangrao Kadam worked with transparency, love and sincere efforts for 60 years, but he never apologized. Gandhi said, “Apologies are made when you make a mistake.”
He said that the Kadam statue will remain strong for the next 50-70 years. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said on the occasion that the fall of Shivaji Maharaj’s statue is an insult to the state and the country. He said, “The Kadam statue has been made by Ram Sutar, who is a skilled sculptor.” Kharge said that the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi is ready to fight the upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra unitedly. He said that “all the real leaders of NCP (Nationalist Congress Party) and Shiv Sena are with us, fake leaders are on the other side.” Congress chief Kharge said that if the BJP loses Maharashtra, the Modi government will also be in danger. He asked the people not to be misled by the state government’s Ladki Behen Yojana for women.
