Gandhi further stated that the “Congress and INDIA alliance is dedicated to protecting the Constitution and democracy”…reports Asian Lite News
As the third phase of Lok Sabha elections is underway, Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Tuesday urged the voters to vote for her party to secure a “brighter future” for the country adding that Bharatiya Janata Party’s only goal is to gain power at any cost and they have promoted “hatred” for political gain.
In a video message, Sonia Gandhi said that youth, women, Dalits, tribals, backward classes and minorities are facing “terrible discrimination” under the BJP government.
“This atmosphere is due to the intentions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP. Their focus is only on gaining power at any cost. They have promoted hatred for political gain. The Congress Party and I have always fought for the progress of all, justice for the deprived and to strengthen the country. I want your support. Our Nyay Patra and our guarantees are also aimed at keeping the country united and giving strength to the poor, women, farmers, workers and deprived communities,” Sonia Gandhi said.
Gandhi further stated that the “Congress and INDIA alliance is dedicated to protecting the Constitution and democracy”.
“Vote for Congress for a bright future for all and together let us build a strong and united India,” she added.
The polling started for 93 Lok Sabha seats across 12 states and union territories in the third phase of the general election on Tuesday at 7:00 am.
The states and Union Territories where the elections are being held in this phase are Assam (4), Bihar (5), Chhattisgarh (7), Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Daman and Diu (2), Goa (2), Gujarat (25), Karnataka (14), Maharashtra (11), Madhya Pradesh (8), Uttar Pradesh (10) and West Bengal (4). The BJP has bagged the Surat seat unopposed.
In this phase, more than 1300 candidates, including around 120 women, are in the fray. A total of 17.24 crore voters are eligible to cast their franchise in this phase at 1.85 lakh polling stations. Seventy-five delegates from 23 countries will see the poll process, the poll panel said.
In the 2019 general election, the BJP won 72 of the 93 seats that go to the polls today. Polling for more than half of the total number of constituencies will be completed by the end of this phase. The Lok Sabha elections are being held across seven phases, from April 19 to June 1.
The counting is scheduled for June 4. The Narendra Modi-led BJP is seeking a third term in power, while the opposition INDIA bloc is aiming to wrest power by stopping the juggernaut.
British Raj-like conditions in India, says Priyanka
Launching a sharp attack on the Central government, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi said that under the reign of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, “British Raj-like conditions” are prevailing in the country, with the government policies only benefiting billionaires.
“British Raj-like conditions are prevalent in the country. The policies of the Modi government are not being made keeping in mind the poor but have been made to benefit the billionaires. International reports show that today the condition of inequality in India is worse than British rule,” Priyanka Gandhi said on Tuesday while addressing Congress workers in the Rae Bareli constituency in Uttar Pradesh, where her brother and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is contesting.
“All the institutions which strengthen democracy are being weakened, be it media or Parliament. Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Nehru had fought against the British to strengthen the rights of the people, little did they know that a day would come in independent India when the government would be bent upon depriving the people of their rights,” she added.
She alleged that efforts are being made to change the Constitution, which provides a system like reservation that has changed the lives of crores of people. It is the misfortune of the country that today a person is sitting on the Prime Minister’s chair whose language, behaviour and actions are of low standard, she said.
“We have always given priority to development and have dreamed of a developed and prosperous Rae Bareli. When we got the opportunity, we created employment and development opportunities in Rae Bareli but the Modi government either closed many of the projects started by us or promoted them in its name,” Priyanka Gandhi said.
Raebareli constituency goes to the polls on May 20. In the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi won the constituency, bagging 534,918 votes. Her closest rival, Dinesh Pratap Singh, put up a formidable challenge, gathering 367,740 votes.
Rahul Gandhi had been representing the neighbouring Amethi constituency in Lok Sabha from 2004 to 2019, when he lost to the BJP’s Smriti Irani. (ANI)