Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said his party will not let the “hatred” being spread by the BJP on the basis of religion, language, and caste win and appealed to the people of Haryana to oust the ruling party in the Assembly polls.
Gandhi was addressing a public meeting in Nuh that had witnessed incidents of violence last year after a Vishva Hindu Parishad procession was attacked by a mob, leading to the death of six people, including two home guards and a cleric.
The fight is between ‘mohabbat’ (love) and ‘nafrat’ (hatred). The Congress spreads love while the BJP spreads “hatred”, Gandhi said on the last day of campaigning for the October 5 assembly polls.
“The most important thing is brotherhood. Wherever the BJP and RSS people go, they spread hatred. In whichever state they go, somewhere they talk about language, somewhere they talk about religion and somewhere they speak about caste.
“Hatred has to be ended. India is not a country of hatred, it is the country of ‘mohabbat’. And you have shown this to the entire country,” said Gandhi.
India is the country of ‘mohabbat ki dukan’, not ‘nafrat ka bazaar’, he said “We will not let this hatred win in the country. Love, brotherhood and unity will win in the country,” said the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.
“With hatred, the country gets weakened. Hatred spreads sorrow and fear. It is only love which is an antidote to hatred. Love spreads brotherhood and with love, the country progresses. We talk about love but they (BJP) spread hatred and try to break the country,” he added.
Holding a copy of the Constitution, Gandhi said it has protected the rights of the poor, farmers, and labourers but “the BJP and the RSS were hell-bent on attacking the Constitution.” “The fight is about this. If the Constitution does not remain, then you, the poor, would not have anything. Your land, money, and water will vanish. These will go into the hands of select 20-25 people,” he said.
Rahul again raised the issue of several Haryana youths going to the US while adopting an illegal route after spending a huge sum of money in search of a better future, saying they were unable to get employment opportunities in their home state.
The counting of votes for the Assembly polls will take place on October 8.