Rahul Gandhi, the ringleader of the “intellectual Naxal” brigade, has once again taken to the arena, brandishing a cardboard sword over the issue of levying a nominal charge on merchants, rather than ordinary consumers, for UPI transactions.
He has indulged in rhetorical theatrics, demanding the withdrawal of the tax and urging the government not to bow before America but to stand tall. In politics, opposition to the ruling party by the opposition party is expected; indeed, it is the very soul of parliamentary democracy.
However, Rahul Gandhi serves as a prime example of how a leader lacking prudence and political acumen can become shrill and end up making a laughingstock of himself while playing the role of the opposition. He consistently attempts to hog the limelight by opposing every decision made by the Modi government.
Reacting to the decision to impose MDR charges on UPI transactions, Rahul Gandhi, true to form, criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rahul Gandhi has stated that Prime Minister Modi should stand firm, not bow down to the US, and have these tariffs revoked. Rahul Gandhi, in his attempt to project himself as an aggressive opposition leader, has developed a habit of making baseless statements.
Such rhetoric has previously forced him to apologize before the Supreme Court, yet he has not shed the habit of making reckless remarks. While alleging irregularities in the purchase of Rafale fighter jets, Rahul Gandhi had used highly derogatory language regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He was compelled to offer an unconditional apology to the Supreme Court for making allegations against the Prime Minister without any evidence.
Taking the UPI charges as an excuse, Rahul Gandhi has, as usual, begun spreading false and fabricated information and attempting to create confusion in the minds of the public.
While engaging in idle chatter about the government needing to show a “strong spine,” Rahul Gandhi will have to be confronted with historical evidence showing how often, or rather, how they failed to display such resolve between 2004 and 2014, and how his father and grandmother, while claiming to have a spine and stand tall, actually capitulated to America and Pakistan.
There is no doubt that Rahul Gandhi will, as is his habit, ignore this evidence and resume his “song of lies.” During the tenure of Dr. Manmohan Singh’s government from 2004 to 2014, the “remote control” of the government lay with Rahul Gandhi and his mother, Smt. Sonia Gandhi. During those ten years, Pakistani terrorists wreaked havoc across the country, carrying out bomb blasts in India at will. The Manmohan government did nothing beyond merely condemning the terrorists.
Consequently, Pakistan launched an attack on Mumbai on November 26, 2008, by sending in terrorists; a handful of extremists held the entire nation hostage at the time. Despite such a brazen act of aggression by Pakistan, the Congress-led Manmohan government did nothing other than dispatching formal letters of protest. At that time, Rahul Gandhi lacked the courage to tell his mother or Manmohan Singh to stand firm and teach Pakistan a lesson.
Similarly, in September 2013, when Pakistan’s then-Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif made derogatory remarks about Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh during the United Nations General Assembly session, Rahul Gandhi failed to show the courage to condemn Sharif.
During this General Assembly, after meeting the then President of the United States, Barack Obama, Manmohan Singh had raised the issue of Pakistan providing assistance to terrorists. Nawaz Sharif had said at the time that Manmohan Singh’s behavior was like that of an unsophisticated village woman. At that time, Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi had remained conspicuously silent. Narendra Modi, who was then the Chief Minister of Gujarat, had strongly criticized Sharif’s statement.
The Bhopal gas tragedy occurred in December 1984, during the tenure of Rahul Gandhi’s father, Rajiv Gandhi, as Prime Minister. Thousands of ordinary citizens lost their lives in this tragedy. Thousands were permanently disabled, and many lost their eyesight.
Local citizens had filed a formal police complaint against Union Carbide, the American company responsible for the gas leak. Acting on this complaint, when police officers went to arrest Anderson, the CEO of Union Carbide, they received orders from Delhi. Instead of being arrested, Anderson was flown to Delhi on a special aircraft. Anderson returned to his home country from Delhi.
The head of the company responsible for the loss of thousands of innocent lives walked away scot-free. This is the Congress party’s idea of a ‘strong spine.’ After the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War, the US had pressured India to release the 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war.
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, representing the Jan Sangh, had demanded that India first secure the return of its own prisoners and reclaim Pakistan-occupied Kashmir before releasing the Pakistani prisoners. However, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi released the 93,000 Pakistani prisoners of war. Rahul Gandhi should not forget this history.
Courtesy : TOI
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