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Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday branded Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi as the "biggest red flag" for the Congress party, challenging him to answer 10 questions regarding SIR, the electoral process, and claims of vote theft.
Addressing a press conference in Delhi, Goyal accused him of repeatedly causing electoral setbacks for his party. Challenging Gandhi to respond to a set of 10 questions, Goyal accused the Congress party of hypocrisy when questioning election authorities. "I challenge Rahul Gandhi to answer these 10 questions. Several people consider Rahul Gandhi the biggest red flag because of whom the Congress is losing again and again. Youth calls bad omen, a red flag. Rahul Gandhi is the biggest red flag for Congress," he said. Further, Goyal alleged that Rahul Gandhi and his colleagues mistreated a woman journalist who was three months pregnant while she was attempting to cover the demonstration. "Rahul Gandhi and his colleagues misbehaved with a woman journalist who is 3 months pregnant. She was only covering their protest. I don't think the 140 crore people of the country or any journalist would ever forgive this," he said. He further alleged that several Congress leaders are speaking against Gandhi, highlighting that Shashi Tharoor had claimed that Congress won in Kerala because of the SIR, as removing duplicate and deceased names prevented malpractice. He noted, "Ramesh Chennithala claimed that Congress won in Kerala because of the SIR, and Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan praised the SIR." He added that Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury also praised the Election Commission for handling the West Bengal elections fairly and impartially, opposing Mamata Banerjees wrong actions. "Now their own party is making baseless and false vote-theft claims, and aligning with Mamata Banerjee whom they used to oppose, turning it into a recurring political drama," he said. The remarks came after INDIA bloc leaders and supporters, led by Rahul Gandhi, marched through Barakhamba Road towards the Supreme Court on Monday, following which 11 opposition leaders filed a petition in the apex court challenging the Election Commission's decisions relating to the SIR of electoral rolls. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court Registry has flagged 14 defects in the writ petition filed by Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and nine other INDIA bloc leaders challenging aspects of the ECI's ongoing SIR drive. (ANI)
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