Gandhi family’s caste martyrdom: Congress hits back at Anurag Thakur

PTI, Jul 31, 2024, 9:18 AM IST

New Delhi: The Congress on Tuesday said the Gandhi family’s caste is martyrdom but the BJP-RSS will never understand that, as it slammed the ruling party over its MP Anurag Thakur’s apparent questioning of Rahul Gandhi’s caste.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said his party is ready to listen to any casteist abuse, but it is determined to get a caste census done.

“Yes, I am an Indian and a Dalit, but I don’t know how many we are. Yes, I am a tribal, but I don’t know how many we are. Yes, I am an OBC, but I don’t know how many we are. Today, we all need to assess how much our participation is in the progress of this country.

“The BJP-RSS people are conspiring to hide this from us, so that they can keep us backward and take over our rights by snatching reservation through conspiracies,” Kharge said in a post in Hindi on X.

The BJP-RSS believe in Manusmriti, but not even an iota on Babasaheb Ambedkar’s Constitution, he alleged.

They want to continue the 5,000 years old social exploitation in this country, he said.

Caste census is the need of the hour, so that social, economic and political empowerment can be implemented for the marginalized people, he asserted.

“So that we can take advantage of equal opportunity and share,” Kharge added.

But the Modi government is “depriving us” of this, he alleged.

“‘Ginti Karo (get a counting done)’ is our resolution. The Indian National Congress is ready to listen to any casteist abuse, but we are determined to carry out the caste census!” Kharge said.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra came down heavily on Thakur’s apparent questioning of Rahul Gandhi’s caste in the Lok Sabha.

“A socio-economic caste census is the demand of 80 per cent of the people of this country. Today, it was said in Parliament that those whose caste is not known talk about a caste census,” she said in a post in Hindi on X.

Will 80 per cent of India’s population be abused in Parliament now, she asked.

“(Prime Minister) Narendra Modi should clarify whether this happened at his behest,” she added.

Congress’ media and publicity department head Pawan Khera said the words used by Thakur for Rahul Gandhi are echoing in the minds of people and they are angry over it.

“The real face of the BJP has come to the fore. This mindset can only be of the BJP that such abuses are used for a person who is the son of a family of martyrs. He is told that your caste is not known. We will tell you what his caste is. Rahul Gandhi’s father is a martyr and this family’s caste is martyrdom. This the RSS, the BJP and Thakur can never understand,” Khera said in a video statement.

He said the Congress does not want the BJP’s apology over the issue.

“The caste census will take place in the country. You can abuse the Gandhi family, Rahul Gandhi and the Congress as much as you want, but this fight will continue. Justice will be done,” Khera said.