Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the central government on Thursday, declaring that there is "no democracy" in India and alleging that the country's status as the world's largest democracy is a lie. He accused the ruling BJP of undermining democracy by freezing the bank accounts of the main opposition party.
Speaking at a press conference in Delhi, Rahul Gandhi claimed that all of Congress' bank accounts had been frozen, severely hindering their ability to campaign, support party workers, and back candidates just months before crucial elections. He asserted that this action was orchestrated to cripple the party financially.
"20 per cent of India votes for us and we are not able to pay Rs 2 for anything. It has been orchestrated to cripple us in the elections. Even if our bank accounts are unfrozen today, huge amount of debt damage has been done to Indian democracy," he added.
Gandhi criticized the lack of response from institutions like the Election Commission, stating that their silence on freezing the bank accounts of a major political party was concerning.
"All our bank accounts have been frozen. We can do no campaign work, we cannot support our workers, we cannot support our candidates. This has been done two months before the election campaign. One notice comes from the 90s, another from 6-7 years back. Quantum amount is Rs 14 lakhs and punishment - our entire financial identity. All the institutions are quiet and the Election Commission has not even said anything," he said.
"This is not freezing of Congress party's bank accounts; this is the freezing of Indian democracy. As the biggest opposition party, we are unable to take any action - we can't book advertisements or send our leaders anywhere. This is an assault on democracy," he added.
"What's interesting to me is that there are institutions in this country that are supposed to protect the democratic framework. There is an Election Commission in the country but it has not even said anything; that you have frozen the bank accounts of one of the biggest political parties and largest opposition in the country," he further said.
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal had earlier dismissed the Congress Party's plea to stay the Income Tax Department's proceedings of recovery and freezing of their bank accounts, calling the application without merit.
Following the press conference, Rahul Gandhi reiterated his stance on combating what he described as "hatred-filled 'Asura-shakti'" (evil forces) and was supported by other prominent Congress leaders including Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, and former Presidents of the party. They condemned the BJP for the alleged freezing of the Congress party's bank accounts.
