“Our Own Government Promoting Injustice”: Kharge Slams Modi Govt at AICC Meet

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday declared that the party was waging a "second war of independence" against communalism, injustice, inequality, poverty, and discrimination.

Speaking at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) session, Kharge stated that while such injustices were once imposed by foreign rulers, today, it is the country’s own government that promotes them. "At that time, the foreign government took advantage of communalism, and now it is our own government which is taking advantage," he remarked, asserting, "but we will win this war."

He accused the ruling party of continuously attacking the Constitution over the last eleven years. “Our constitutional values and constitutional institutions are continuously under attack,” he said. Kharge also pointed out that Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, was not allowed to speak during the Budget Session despite the Speaker taking his name. “What is happening today never ever happened in the past,” he noted, adding that instead of debating important issues, the government was resorting to polarisation.

The Congress president raised concerns over economic issues, citing the US’s imposition of a 26 percent tariff on Indian imports, which he said should have been debated in Parliament. He further alleged that the government was creating monopolies, selling off public sector undertakings, and depriving youth of permanent jobs and reservation benefits for SCs, STs, OBCs, and EWS categories.

On electoral malpractices, he alleged that the Election Commission of India was not addressing opposition complaints and accused the government of manipulating voter lists, citing Maharashtra as an example. He also questioned the ECI’s reluctance to shift to ballot papers while the world was moving in that direction.

Highlighting the grim economic situation, Kharge claimed that 15 lakh well-to-do Indians had migrated abroad, while job-seeking migrants were being sent back in chains. Meanwhile, those who looted banks in India were staying abroad comfortably. He also criticized the abolition of the Planning Commission in 2014 and accused the central government of discrimination against opposition-led states like Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Karnataka, Telangana, and Jharkhand.

Referring to the Supreme Court’s recent verdict on Governors, Kharge said that Governors can no longer withhold decisions of elected governments. He also condemned the “communalisation and commercialisation of education,” alleging that the government was deliberately denying Dalit, OBC, and Adivasi students access to higher education to force them into cheap labor.

The Congress president accused the Modi government of suppressing the farmers' agitation and failing to fulfill its promises on Minimum Support Price (MSP) and doubling farmers’ incomes. He further alleged that labour laws were being weakened, trade unions were being crushed, and wages had stagnated for a decade.

On the government’s “Make in India” initiative, Kharge cited official data revealing that five lakh medium and small enterprises had shut down in the last five years. He also criticized inflation, citing rising petroleum and gas prices despite falling international rates.

Kharge urged Congress workers to work hard, stating that those who cannot should step aside. Among those present at the event were Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, and other senior leaders and delegates from across the country.

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