ISLAMABAD: In a sharp political reaction, Indian Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of misusing an official national address for partisan attacks, calling it “a travesty of Democracy and the Constitution of India.”
In a strongly worded statement shared on X on Saturday, Kharge alleged that the prime minister’s speech disproportionately criticized the Congress while neglecting key issues such as women’s representation, and claimed it violated the Model Code of Conduct already in force.
“A desperate and frustrated PM @narendramodi with nothing meaningful to show for the last 12 years, turned an official address to the nation, into a political speech, full of mudslinging, and outright LIES.”
‘Travesty of Democracy’
The Congress president, who is also the Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, said, “The Model Code of Conduct is already in place and it was very clear how PM Modi misused official machinery to attack his opponents. This is a travesty of Democracy and the Constitution of India.”
Criticizing the Indian prime minister, he said, “Modi ji mentioned Congress 59 times and women barely few times. That tells the country everything about his priorities. Women are not the BJP’s priority. Congress is, because Congress stands on the right side of history.”
Taking the prime minister to task for the ruling BJP’s poor record on women's rights, the opposition leader said, “Congress has always supported women’s reservation. We were the party that passed the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Rajya Sabha in 2010 so that it would not lapse. The BJP could not get that Bill passed in the Lok Sabha. They brought another Bill in 2023 and the Congress Party supported that too. That Bill still exists. In fact, it was notified on 16th April, while the Lok Sabha was discussing these delimitation Constitutional Amendment Bills. This was done by the same Prime Minister. The fact that it took the BJP 3 years to notify their own bill, shows their commitment to India’s Naari Shakti!”
‘STOP lying to the nation’
He said, “Modi ji should STOP lying to the nation.”
The opposition leader demanded that Modi “implement 33% reservation for women in the existing 543 Lok Sabha seats under the 2023 law.”
“Stop mixing up the delimitation bills, i.e, the 3 Constitution Amendment Bills with the Women’s Reservation Bill. Stop lying to the nation that this was an amendment to the Women’s Reservation Bill — the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam. It was NOT. This was purely a delimitation Bill, brought in to create further division and redraw the electoral map in a manner that can only benefit the BJP,” Kharge demanded.
‘Apologise to 140 Crore Indians’
Kharge demanded PM Modi to “Apologise to 140 Crore Indians.”
“Congress has always been pro-reform. Congress transformed Indian agriculture through the Green Revolution, strengthened dairy development through the White Revolution, created our Space sector, made India a Nuclear power, Liberalised the economy in 1991, 60 Crore ADHAAR cards were distributed before Modi ji took office. Congress passed RTI, RTE, Food Security Act, MGNREGA - which Modi ji repealed,” he lamented.
Garlanding rapists
The Congress president said, “The BJP has been anti-women in both action and attitude. They have no answers for Hathras. They have no answers for Unnao. They have no answers for the treatment of Haryana’s women wrestlers. They have shielded rapists within their own party. They released the rapists in the Bilkis Bano case.”
“They have garlanded criminals and rapists. The NCRB data itself shows that crimes against women are highest in BJP-ruled states,” he added.
‘Nothing to offer’
Kharge said, “After 12 and a half years in power, in the middle of an international crisis, high inflation, a deteriorating economy, sliding Rupee, and deep public distress, the Prime Minister had nothing to offer the nation except a political speech.”
“Even with the Model Code of Conduct in place, he chose to blame the Opposition, especially Congress, for his own failures, his own betrayal, and his own apathy.”
The opposition leader accused the Indian prime minister of dividing the nation.
“BJP-RSS divides the nation. RSS supported the British against Indians and wrote mercy petitions to them. Every Indian knows that Modi Jis political masters — RSS are against WOMEN. They believe in Manusmiti, which encourages DIVISION, and NOT the Constitution of India,” he said in his social media post.
