New Delhi [India], November 5 : Union Minister Kiren Rijiju on Wednesday alleged that "many forces" in India and abroad are using Congress leader Rahul Gandhi as a "pawn to damage the image" of the country under a "well-planned conspiracy" and accused the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha of targeting the Institutions of the country.
At a press conference here called to counter the allegations of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about the 2024 Haryana assembly polls, the Union Minister said, "Rahul Gandhi is targeting not just the BJP, but our country's system and the credibility of its institutions. You'll see him target the army. Then, if the court's decision isn't fair, he'll attack the Supreme Court and the judiciary. Questioning the Election Commission, our democratic system, and the credibility of the institutions means you're targeting the country, our system.
"This is a well-planned conspiracy. I've told you before that there are many forces. there are many such people in India and abroad. They're using Rahul Gandhi as a pawn to harm India's image ..."
This comment came after Congress MP Rahul Gandhi urged India's Gen Z and youth to safeguard the country's democratic process, while addressing allegations of large-scale voter fraud in Haryana.
Gandhi highlighted that the youth have the power to restore democracy through truth and non-violence.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju called the vote-fraud allegation made by Rahul Gandhi a way to hide his failures and added, "Voting is two days away in Bihar, but today, Rahul Gandhi was narrating the story of Haryana. This clearly shows that there is no issue left in Bihar, so the Haryana issue is being fabricated to divert attention..."
Drawing comparisons to past elections, Rijiju recalled, "He (Rahul Gandhi) said that the Congress had won in the exit polls in Haryana. Even during the 2004 elections, exit polls and opinion polls were declaring victory for the BJP and the NDA, but the actual counting results showed that the NDA had lost. We accepted the results and congratulated the UPA, but we did not abuse the Election Commission."
The Minister also cited statements from Congress leaders themselves, including Kumari Selja where she said and Rijiju quoted, "Congress wouldn't be able to win here, because its own leaders wanted to defeat the party." Rijiju added that several Congress leaders said there was no coordination in the Congress party at the grassroots level.
"State Congress president Rao Narendra Singh admitted that there is no coordination at the grassroots level in the Congress party, so how could Congress win? Their own leaders are saying that Congress lost because of itself, while Rahul Gandhi's claim that they lost due to stolen votes, who on earth would believe that?" Rijiju said.
Highlighting the BJP's organisational discipline, Rijiju added, "Our Haryana Chief Minister said one line: 'We will win the elections. We have a good system." What does system mean? Our cadre, our workers, our leaders' dedication, our workers' sacrifice. This is our system; this is our strength. This is why we confidently say we will win the elections."
Rijiju also accused Rahul Gandhi of inciting the Gen Z and added, "...He (Rahul Gandhi) talks about inciting Gen-Z. The people of our country are intelligent....The game that Rahul Gandhi is playing to divert this, to defame our country, the conspiracy he is hatching with anti-national forces, will never succeed."
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju further asked the Congress party to file a petition and said, "If the Congress party has not filed a single case of fraud or violation of election rules, then they should file a petition...His press address is an act of fraud in itself."