New Delhi: Former Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday launched a sharp attack on Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of spreading “lies” over students’ interests and refusing to participate in a discussion in Parliament despite the government being ready to respond.
In a post on social media, Pradhan alleged that the Congress was continuously spreading false claims regarding the interests of students and said Rahul Gandhi was unwilling to come to Parliament or listen to the government’s answers.
“Congress is continuously spreading lies regarding students’ interests. Rahul Gandhi lacks facts, and the Leader of Opposition, who habitually lies, neither wants to come to Parliament nor listen to answers. They just want to spread their lies and shed crocodile tears,” Pradhan said.
His remarks came amid a growing political confrontation between the government and opposition over the recent protests by students in Jharkhand and the alleged use of force by police against them.
Pradhan also accused Rahul Gandhi and the Congress of making “baseless, factless false accusations” against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He said that the government is ready to discuss every issue in Parliament, but alleged that the Congress was obstructing the functioning of the House. “Making baseless, factless false accusations against the Honourable Home Minister Shri Amit Shah ji reveals the political desperation of Rahul Gandhi and the Congress,” Pradhan said.
He alleged that the opposition was attempting to obstruct Parliament instead of participating in discussions and accused it of putting political interests ahead of the welfare of the country and the youth.
“The government is ready for discussion in Parliament on every issue, but Congress is obstructing the temple of democracy, ‘Parliament House’ and crushing the interests of the country and the youth,” Pradhan said.
The former Education Minister further alleged that whenever discussions were offered in the House, the opposition created protests outside Parliament because it was unwilling to listen to answers inside the House.
Pradhan also accused the Congress of following what he described as a “selective” approach towards incidents involving young people.
“Congress’s democracy is also ‘Selective’–violence against youth where they are in government, and lies and commotion where they want to shine politically,” he said. Referring specifically to the Jharkhand protests, Pradhan said the alleged brutality against students had been witnessed by the entire country and questioned Rahul Gandhi’s response to the incident. “But the question is, why is Rahul Gandhi, who holds press conferences on every issue, maintaining silence today?” he asked.
The BJP and Congress have intensified their exchanges over the issue, with NDA MPs on Tuesday staging a protest in the Parliament complex accusing the opposition of avoiding a discussion. The ruling alliance has maintained that Home Minister Amit Shah is ready to respond to concerns raised by the opposition.
Pradhan also accused the Congress of operating with what he called the “mindset of the Emergency era”, saying there was no place for dictatorship in a democracy.
“There is no place for dictatorship in democracy; Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party, which operates on the mindset of the Emergency era, should understand this well,” he said.
Pradhan’s comments are likely to further sharpen the political battle over the Jharkhand student protests, with the government seeking to shift the focus towards a parliamentary debate and the opposition continuing to demand accountability over the alleged police action at Jantar Mantar.
The protests in Jharkhand have centred on allegations of irregularities in recruitment examinations and demands for reforms and an independent probe. The unrest has become a major political issue, with the BJP calling for a statewide shutdown on Tuesday over the police action and Opposition leaders demanding answers from the government.
This report is auto-generated from ANI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.