New Delhi: In a charged address at the All India Congress Committee’s Annual Legal Conclave titled ‘Constitutional Challenges – Perspectives & Pathways’, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, alleged that BJP leader Arun Jaitley was sent to threaten him during his campaign against the now-repealed farm laws.
“I remember when I was fighting the farm laws and he is not here anymore so really I shouldn’t say it but I will, Arun Jaitley Ji was sent to me to threaten me. He said, ‘If you carry on down this path opposing the government, we will have to act against you.’ I looked at him and said, ‘I don’t think you know who you are talking to. Because we are Congress people. We are not cowards,” LoP Gandhi stated.
LoP Gandhi’s remarks came as part of a broader attack on what he described as the systematic dismantling of constitutional institutions in India. He accused the BJP government of weakening democratic structures and compromising the integrity of the electoral process.
He reiterated his allegations of large-scale voter fraud and manipulation, particularly since the 2014 general elections. “I always had a suspicion that something was wrong. It started with Gujarat. The Congress didn’t win a single seat in some states, it didn’t add up. When we questioned it, we were told: ‘Where’s the proof?’” he said.
Citing the party’s deep-dive into Maharashtra’s voter data, he said: “We compared lakhs of voter photographs and names, manually. In one constituency, 6.5 lakh votes were cast, and 1.5 lakh were fake. We got this from the Election Commission, physical copies, because they wouldn’t give us electronic ones. The Election Commission has disappeared. It doesn’t exist anymore.”
During his speech the audience began chanting slogans like “Desh ka raja kaisa ho, Rahul Gandhi jaisa ho”. However, LoP Gandhi responded firmly, stating: “I am not a king. I don’t want to be a king. I oppose that concept.”
The conclave, organised by the AICC’s Legal, Human Rights and RTI Department, saw participation from top Congress leaders and legal professionals.
(IANS)
