Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Tuesday claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi was heading a “minority” government which cannot function without the support of its allies the JD (U) and the TDP.
Questioning the longevity of the BJP-led NDA government which assumed office on June 9, he predicted, “Today or tomorrow they will collapse.”
Speaking at an event in Mumbai organised to mark the 80th birth anniversary of former Prime Minister and Congress stalwart Rajiv Gandhi, Kharge emphasised the INDIA alliance gave a befitting reply to the BJP in the recent Lok Sabha polls and restricted its seat tally to 240, well below the 272 majority mark and down from 303 in 2019.
Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and NCP (SP) president Sharad Pawar, both allies of the Congress, attended the event.
The Congress chief asserted the BJP’s political plans have been hit due to the growing number of parties joining the opposition INDIA bloc, which won 234 Lok Sabha seats. He said earlier laws were being passed without any consultation.
However, with the anti-BJP alliance becoming strong post the Lok Sabha polls, proposed legislations like the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, had to be referred to a joint parliamentary panel for further scrutiny, noted the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
This was not the case before, he said, referring to the time when the BJP had a full majority in the Lok Sabha.
Kharge described the saffron outfit as “poison” and maintained there was no need to taste it.
Maharashtra, which has the second highest number of Lok Sabha seats at 48, jolted Modi in such a powerful way that the BJP failed to get a majority on its own, Kharge pointed out.
The BJP-led NDA bagged only 17 of the 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra, while the state-level opposition alliance Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) won in 30 constituencies.
“Now, he (referring to PM and his government) is not (standing) on his legs. His (Modi’s) government now has two legs. One is the TDP and the other is JD (U). If both legs are gone, Modi cannot walk, move or function. This is a minority government,” Kharge insisted.
N Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Nitish Kumar-led JD(U), which won 16 and 12 seats in Andhra Pradesh and Bihar, respectively, are providing crucial support to the BJP-led NDA government.
Kharge alleged the Modi government ignores the poor and thinks only about the rich.
“These people cannot run the country for long. Today or tomorrow they will collapse,” the Congress president said.
“You have to bear the consequences. Someday your situation will be the same as you treat opposition parties. They (BJP) should abandon arrogance and pride,” he averred, referring to the alleged misuse of central agencies against leaders in the anti-BJP camp.
Saving the Constitution still remains a top issue for the opposition bloc, Kharge declared, stressing that states play an important role in this endeavour.
He said MPs alone are not enough to save the Constitution and they require support from MLAs too.
The Congress leader emphasised that there is a need for opposition parties to form governments at the state-level, remarks coming ahead of the Maharashtra assembly polls. It is states that elect MPs to the Rajya Sabha.
“Constitutional amendments also need ratification of the states (assemblies). If we have a majority in the states, then no one can talk about changing the Constitution. How will we stop wrong amendments (if we do not have MPs in Rajya Sabha and governments in states)?” Kharge asked.
The Congress chief justified his party’s demand for conducting a nationwide caste census, one of its Lok Sabha poll planks, and said such an exercise will help determine which sections need more support from the government.
He claimed the BJP was not committed to the betterment of common citizens and so it is necessary to bring a strong MVA government in Maharashtra, where polls are due in October-November, and teach the saffron outfit a lesson.
“Don’t allow Maharashtra to be run from Delhi,” Kharge said in a message to the opposition MVA, which consists of the Congress, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP (SP).
He said the then-PM Rajiv Gandhi worked for development of the country even after winning more than 400 Lok Sabha seats in 1984, and went about his task quietly.
Gandhi, who was PM from 1984 to 1989, launched projects in every sphere — be it computers, telecommunications, rural development, providing reservation to women in panchayats or anti-defection law, Kharge maintained.
He said Gandhi undertook inoculation programmes that saved the lives of lakhs of children but did put his photo on vaccine certificates.
“He (Modi) does such petty things,” Kharge said, referring to the PM’s images on COVID-19 vaccine certificates.
The Congress president accused the Modi dispensation of toppling governments headed by opposition parties in states.
Kharge lashed out at PM Modi for what he said taking investments meant for Maharashtra to his home state Gujarat.
He referred to the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train, one of the flagship infrastructure projects of the Modi government, and said its cost has spiralled to Rs 3 lakh crore from its initial outlay.
“Even if it is completed no poor will use it,” Kharge averred.
He said the Congress built public sector undertakings, but the BJP government is selling them. (PTI)
