In a vehement critique directed towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mallikarjun Kharge, the president of Congress, articulated that once the electoral proceedings conclude, the populace will primarily recall Modi as the premier who engaged in “polarizing and sectarian rhetoric steeped in deceit” to circumvent an unavoidable downfall.
Kharge implored the prime minister to canvass votes predicated on his administration’s accomplishments over the preceding decade, rather than resorting to “vitriolic oratory.” The Congress leader conveyed these sentiments in correspondence to Prime Minister Modi, wherein he refuted the accusations and assaults levied against his party in the PM’s missive to NDA contenders subsequent to the second phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
Prime Minister Modi enjoined the BJP-led NDA contenders in the Lok Sabha elections to disseminate awareness among voters regarding the Congress’s purported scheme to wrest “reservation from SC, ST, and OBC communities and bestow it upon their electoral base.” In a personal communiqué addressed to them, Modi also ascribed divisive and prejudicial motives to the Congress and its cohorts, notwithstanding the fact that according reservation predicated on religion is unconstitutional.
Addressing Modi, Kharge remarked, “I perused the missive authored by you to all the NDA contenders concerning the message they ought to convey to the electorate. Judging by the tone and substance of the correspondence, it appears that you are grappling with a substantial degree of desperation and apprehension, compelling you to employ language that is incongruous with the dignity of the Prime Minister’s office.”
“The correspondence conveys the impression that the falsehoods permeating your oratory are failing to yield the desired impact, prompting you to urge your contenders to amplify these falsehoods. Repetition of a falsehood ad infinitum does not imbue it with veracity,” he remarked. Kharge, the Congress chief, contended that the electorate possesses the sagacity to discern for themselves the content of the Congress manifesto and the assurances it proffers.
“Our assurances are succinct and transparent, obviating the necessity for explication. Nonetheless, for your elucidation, I shall enumerate them here,” Kharge expounded in his correspondence, delineating the party’s pledges regarding Yuva Nyay, Nari Nyay, Kisan Nyay, Shramik Nyay, and Hissedari Nyay.
“We have heard your aspersions, and those of the Home Minister, alleging that Congress espouses appeasement politics. However, the only instance of appeasement politics over the past decade pertains to the appeasement of China by you and your ministers. Even now, you refrain from characterizing China as ‘Intruder’; instead, on June 19, 2020, you stated ‘Neither an Intruder nor an Incursion has occurred,’ thereby denigrating the supreme sacrifice of 20 Indian soldiers in Galwan,” the Congress chief asseverated.
“Your ostensible exoneration of China has enfeebled India’s stance and emboldened it further. Despite escalating tensions prompted by recurrent Chinese transgressions and the construction of military infrastructure proximate to the LAC in Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh, and Uttarakhand, imports of Chinese merchandise into India have surged by 54.76 percent over the past quinquennium alone, exceeding USD 101 billion in 2023-24,” he expounded.
Observing that the PM alleged in his missive to NDA contenders that reservation would be rescinded from SC, ST, and OBC communities and allocated to the Congress’s electoral base, Kharge contended, “Our electoral base encompasses every Indian — the indigent, the marginalized, women, the aspirational youth, the laboring class, Dalits, and Adivasis. It is common knowledge that it is the RSS and BJP who have opposed reservations at every juncture since 1947.”
“Your functionaries have openly articulated such sentiments. It behooves you to elucidate your opposition to reservations for SCs, STs, and OBCs predicated on their demographic representation as enshrined in Article 16 of our Constitution,” Kharge asserted. “In your missive, you opined that the hard-earned money of the people would be seized and disbursed. I seize this opportunity to beseech you to instruct your party to reimburse the Rs 10 crore that were defrauded from impoverished Dalit farmers in Gujarat and funneled as electoral bonds to BJP,” Kharge beseeched.
He indicted the BJP of accumulating Rs 8,250 crore through the “unlawful and unconstitutional” Electoral Bonds. He alleged Modi’s missive “falsifies” Congress’s intention to institute an Inheritance Tax, whereas it is a former BJP Finance Minister and BJP party functionaries who have advocated for such a tax repeatedly.
“I discern from your missive that you are perturbed by the tepid voter turnout in the initial two phases of the elections. This is indicative of the populace’s lack of enthusiasm for your policies or your campaign rhetoric. This is not attributable to the summer heat but rather to the deleterious effects your policies have wrought upon the impoverished,” the Congress chief contended.
Kharge contended that the prime minister evinces scant interest in addressing the burgeoning inequality, unemployment, and unprecedented inflation that afflicts the populace. “You evince no inclination to address the escalating atrocities perpetrated against women by your cohorts,” he remarked in his missive to Modi.
The Congress manifesto expounds upon ‘Nyay’ and how it will engender progress for all strata of society, Kharge expounded. “As prime minister, it would be more prudent to solicit votes predicated on your administration’s performance over the past decade rather than resorting to vitriolic rhetoric. The Congress Party extends an invitation to you or any delegate you designate to engage in a debate with us regarding our manifesto and the contentions you have advanced,” he conveyed.
“As I underscored in my prior missive, once the elections conclude, posterity will primarily remember you as the prime minister who engaged in divisive and sectarian rhetoric steeped in falsehoods to forestall an inevitable defeat,” Kharge concluded.