Mallikarjun Kharge: ‘No person on this nation imagined we might have a Prime Minister who lies a lot’

Mallikarjun Kharge, as Congress president, is main the get together within the 2024 Lok Sabha election after back-to-back debacles in 2014 and 2019 during which it obtained 44 and 52 respectively. Kharge can also be the chairperson of the INDIA bloc. He first turned an MLA 52 years again in 1972, was a Lok Sabha MP for 3 consecutive phrases from 2009, and entered the Rajya Sabha in 2020.

On this unique interview to Frontline, he spoke in regards to the potentialities for his get together on this election, in regards to the INDIA bloc, and the criticisms in regards to the Congress’ decline. Excerpts:

What does the 2024 election imply for the Congress and the nation?

I undoubtedly see a change within the authorities. The INDIA alliance will do properly and we’ll get a majority to unseat the power-drunk BJP. We’ll get a mandate to safeguard the Structure and democracy. This election can also be about saving our impartial establishments. It’s essential to have seen many BJP and RSS leaders speaking in regards to the want for 400 seats. Their MPs, MLAs, and candidates say that they need a 2/third majority to alter the Structure. Their leaders previously have spoken about reviewing reservations provisioned by the Structure to SCs, STs and OBCs. They need to take that away. That’s the reason this election is essential.

Why ought to individuals vote for the Congress? Do you have got a street map for the expansion of the Congress?

Our “Nyay Patra” [Congress manifesto] lays out the street map very clearly for the expansion of the nation. Folks have determined to vote for the Congress as a result of the 2024 election is an issue-based election the place persons are brazenly expressing their disappointment in opposition to the ten years of the Modi authorities. Unemployment, inflation, falling revenue are a few of the most distinguished points they need resolved. Although they’re talking on the bottom in opposition to the BJP and [its] allies, one can’t hear their voices as a result of they don’t have a platform in our democracy anymore. With the vast majority of the media underneath the management of the ruling regime they’ll’t present their anger wherever. The Congress has been giving voice to this public anger.

No person on this nation imagined that we might have a Prime Minister who lies a lot. However I’m assured that politics of growth will win over politics of communalism and divisiveness.

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Why is the Congress in disarray? Desertions have develop into a routine affair.

The Congress is just not in disarray. If a candidate is being threatened or bribed to withdraw his nomination, it exhibits that democracy is being slowly crushed by the BJP. For instance, in Surat all proposers of the Congress candidate gave false affidavits, all impartial candidates withdrew and the BJP candidate was declared elected unanimously with out even a single voter exercising his constitutional proper. Prima facie, it seems to be like a case of electoral corruption. In Indore, on the final doable date, our candidate withdrew his nomination. Once more, this must be investigated as an electoral malpractice.

Many individuals have additionally joined and lots of have come again. Having mentioned that, the check is to identify early individuals who have low dedication to our ideology and never give them the ticket.

Why did Rahul Gandhi not contest from Amethi?

Each Rae Bareli and Amethi have the identical emotional connection to the Congress get together and to Soniaji and Rahulji. Okay.L. Sharma, our candidate in Amethi, has labored for greater than 40 years in that area. He is aware of each lane, each village, and each voter. Priyanka Gandhi is campaigning for him personally. I’ve campaigned in Amethi. The Congress goes to win in Amethi.

Why did the vast majority of senior Congress leaders decline to contest? Are they anxious about dropping?

Digvijaya Singh, Adhir Ranjan Choudhary, Bhupesh Baghel, Anand Sharma…are these [leaders] junior or senior? It’s a mixture of each younger and outdated. Election technique and ticket distribution occur after detailed discussions inside the CEC. Many senior leaders are additionally wanted to handle the election.

Sam Pitroda’s remarks on inheritance tax kicked up a political storm. Was it essential? What prompted the Prime Minister to say that you simply need to snatch the mangalsutras of Hindu girls?

Modi began weaving lies about our manifesto the second he realised the voters are in opposition to him after Part 1. I had written to him saying I’ll give him a replica of our manifesto and we might have a debate about it. The Congress “Nyay Patra” doesn’t speak about inheritance tax in any respect. We imagine in the correct to property. We introduced the correct to property. Within the Seventies, the BJP-RSS, of their Janasanghaavatar, had carried out this fearmongering that the Congress will snatch your property. We’ve served for 55 years. We’ve had governments for many years collectively in lots of States. Modi ought to inform, have we ever snatched anybody’s property?

In Karnataka, a sexual assault case is making information. How is it electorally essential? How will it have an effect on the voting sample?

We’re all shocked on the revelations. I’m shocked that the BJP management was appraised of the misdemeanour however nonetheless went forward with the alliance. Even in the present day, the Authorities of India will know from his passport quantity which nation this individual (Hassan MP Prajwal Revanna) entered and the place he’s hiding. How did he, a white passport holder, run away from India, must be answered by the Modi authorities.

Don’t you assume {that a} BJP-JD(S) alliance in Karnataka might pose a powerful problem?

Generally in politics, what’s math on paper, doesn’t translate into votes. You will notice it within the election outcomes. We should always keep in mind that each occasions, the BJP fashioned governments in Karnataka, they did it utilizing cash energy to poach MLAs. They by no means obtained a majority on their very own.

BJP leaders are attacking the Congress for declining the Ram Mandir invitation. Was it a tactical mistake?

Faith is a really private matter. Many Congress individuals additionally attended the pran pratishtha, nobody within the get together stopped them or questioned them.

Numerous Congress leaders in Delhi have resigned protesting in opposition to the get together’s alliance with the AAP.

Whereas each get together employee would need to contest the election, there are solely a restricted variety of seats. Moving into any alliance additional reduces the possibilities of contesting. When the Congress took the lead in forming the INDIA alliance, we knew that it’s within the bigger curiosity of the nation, and that’s the reason we made some sacrifices.

What’s your major cost in opposition to the Modi authorities?

The Modi authorities has imposed unprecedented unemployment, unparalleled worth rise, and widened revenue inequality within the final 10 years. Exercising brute majority, it has repeatedly undermined establishments and bulldozed them. It has misused establishments that have been earlier autonomous as a weapon to focus on the opposition. It has used the ED, CBI, IT [income tax department], and so forth as extortion instruments to fill its coffers by means of the unconstitutional Electoral Bonds scheme. The Prime Minister is indulging in hate speech. He’s misrepresenting details about our manifesto and spreading lies. All these are main points on this election.

Why was there a lot delay in seat sharing inside the INDIA bloc? There is no such thing as a INDIA bloc in West Bengal, Kerala, or Punjab. In Uttar Pradesh additionally Mayawati is out of it.

We as a celebration take resolution on the recommendation of the native management. We don’t prefer to impose our views on them. Consultations take a while. However it works higher as a result of everybody turns into a stakeholder and, due to this fact, chargeable for each success and failure. However even these events with whom we couldn’t work out seat-sharing preparations, have declared that they’re nonetheless part of the INDIA alliance. The alliance is working as we anticipated.

How do you see Mayawati’s function within the 2024 elections?

Mayawati ji is a senior politician. I’m not an election analyst, however no matter studies we’re getting from Uttar Pradesh, we really feel that she could have been underneath some type of strain.

The Congress was vocal in opposition to electoral bonds however you additionally acquired donations by means of it..

I don’t perceive your argument contemplating that the BJP alone obtained greater than 50% of donations. Our opposition to it was on a matter of precept. The federal government had full entry to the details about donors thus making them weak to manipulation. We might see clear hyperlinks to imagine that the federal government additionally used ED, CBI, IT to extort cash. The higher system is that the voters ought to know who’s donating how a lot to which get together.

Who would be the chief from the INDIA bloc when you assume it may win the election?

We’ll cross the bridge after we come to it. Sure, all events will sit collectively and determine. It isn’t the primary time that this nation is witnessing a coalition authorities. We’ve had very profitable coalition governments previously.

What’s the Congress’ agenda on this election?

The Congress’ agenda is making certain justice, nyay, to everybody. We’ve a 5 NYAY-25 assure agenda for the nation. This consists of welfare for farmers, jobs for youth, financial empowerment for girls, social safety for crores of disadvantaged staff and social justice for the marginalised. And doubling the free meals grains being supplied to the poor from 5 kg to 10 kg.

Additionally Learn | ‘The BJP has not learnt its lesson’: Priyank Kharge

The Election Fee reprimanded you over your remarks about voter turnout information. Did you make a hasty remark in your letter to INDIA allies in regards to the discrepancy in that?

I had written to the leaders of the INDIA events about sure discrepancies within the voter share information and its delay by the Election Fee of India, to which the ECI replied out of flip. We’ve written so many complaints to the ECI earlier, however unusually they selected to answer to my letter to the INDIA events. After their reply got here in, I once more despatched a letter underlining the identical, as a result of they by no means clarified on the delay within the launch of voting percentages or subsequent enhance.

However, I might additionally prefer to level out that the ECI of their letter to me appear to have falsely claimed that the Supreme Courtroom had endorsed their methodology. One of many key factors I made to them was to place out absolutely the voting numbers within the public area. Now, the Supreme Courtroom has made some feedback on it and requested why they can not present last voting percentages in 48 hours.

I solely need to state that the credibility of the ECI, and autonomous establishments on the whole, is at an all-time low. The ECI must strengthen itself so that folks proceed to place confidence in them.

The Congress was initially dismissive of the labarthi (beneficiary) however now you have got promised to double free meals grain to the poor. Why this flip round?

We have been by no means dismissive about any welfare scheme. It was Modi who termed welfare measures as “revdi”. Even a couple of days again, he mocked the free journey being given to poor girls, saying it hurts massive industries. It’s underneath Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, that the Congress-UPA authorities introduced within the Nationwide Meals Safety Act in 2013. Just one Chief Minister, Modi ji, opposed it then. Even the BJP grudgingly supported it in Parliament and meals safety turned a proper. It’s the Congress that rolled out the free rice scheme and ushered in reforms within the public distribution system. When COVID caught, Modiji rebranded the scheme into Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Yojana, as if it was some short-term measure. We’ve even given 35 kg in Chhattisgarh to the extraordinarily poor individuals. So we are able to simply present 10 kg to the individuals now. 

Do you are feeling it’s powerful so that you can lead Congress at a time when the get together appears to be within the ICU?

A celebration in ICU has scared the Prime Minister! On daily basis, he has to resort to lies and propaganda. The very fact is that we’re combating properly with our restricted sources, and our staff are on the bottom. We’ll enhance our tally in lots of States. INDIA events will get greater than 272 comfortably and supply a authorities whose focus will probably be social justice, progressive insurance policies, and India’s development.

The Prime Minister says that the Congress’ manifesto is impressed by the Muslim League.

I have no idea which manifesto Modi ji is studying. Our manifesto doesn’t point out any Hindu-Muslim narrative. Our manifesto is for the 140 crore individuals of India. Is filling 30 lakh authorities job vacancies just for one neighborhood? Is giving Rs.1 lakh to poor girls just for one neighborhood? Is offering Proper to Apprenticeship, and Rs.1 lakh assist for a yr to contemporary diploma/diploma holders for one neighborhood? I problem Modi ji to learn the Congress manifesto with me, phrase by phrase and line by line, and ask us any query, we’ll puncture his get together’s propaganda.

Modi ji doesn’t discuss his personal manifesto and even his achievements. Is there a specific motive why the BJP manifesto was forgotten by Modi and Shah?

The Prime Minister lately mentioned he by no means believed in dividing society on non secular traces, and that the day he does that he wouldn’t stay match for public life. How do you see this?

Modi ji is trapped in his personal contradictions. In the future he calls Muslims “ghuspaithiya” and makes hate speeches, the opposite day he says he wouldn’t be suited to public life if he indulged in Hindu-Muslim, and the opposite day he once more flip-flops and repeats the identical Hindu-Muslim rhetoric which divides society. His total politics has been primarily based on division. He has misplaced the narrative.

The BJP is saying that Congress needs to offer away the reservation obtainable for OBCs to Muslims?

We’re speaking about defending the reservation given in accordance with the Structure and never handing it over to this or that. INDIA is getting large assist within the election. They [BJP] are disturbed. That’s the reason they’re making such wild statements.

Is Rahul Gandhi’s pitch for a caste census having any resonance on the bottom?

We’re not doing it for votes. There are lots of issues that we should always do within the curiosity of the nation, within the curiosity of individuals.