TNI Bureau: Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi on Friday slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) while addressing the Samvidhan Banchao Samabesha in Bhubaneswar in the presence of party’s national president Mallikarjun Kharge and other heavyweight leaders.
Rahul began his speech targeting the BJP’s Odisha government. He said that the Odisha government is looting the wealth and property of the poor people of Odisha. Earlier, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government was looting and now the BJP government is doing the same.
A fight between two sides is going on. While in one side the poor people, Dalits, Tribal, Backward Class, weak, farmers and labourers , the other side five-six billionaires and BJP government and only the Congress workers will win the fight with the people of the state.
The BJP is targeting on the Samvidhan across the State. They are trying to attempts are being made to manipulate elections in Bihar as it was done in Maharashtra. For this, the Election Commission has started a new conspiracy and is working as a part of BJP and not doing its work.
Rahul said that the water, forest, and land belong to the tribals of the state and will remain with them. He also criticized the State government for forcefully displacing the tribals without consultation and non-implementation of PESA, and denial of land rights. He promised that Congress would implement the PESA Act and Tribal Bill to restore tribal people’s rightful ownership.
The Lok Sabha LoP also raised the Ratha Jatra issue and said that the chariots were halted to favor Gautam Adani and his family, this is because Adani is running Odisha.
Expressing his deep concern over women’s issues, the Congress leader alleged that over 40,000 women have disappeared in Odisha and no one knows their whereabouts. At least 15 women are being raped every day in Odisha but thee state government has turned a blind eye to women safety issues.
This apart, Rahul Gandhi hailed the grassroots-level workers of the party and addressed them as the “brave lions” of Odisha who stand with the poor, tribals, Dalits, farmers, and laborers.
The senior Congress leader also expressed his deep gratitude for the Odisha Drivers’ Mahasagha for relaxing their ongoing protest to allow vehicles and drivers to travel to Bhubaneswar to attend the Samvidhan Samabesha at the Baramunda Ground. He also urged the Odisha government to look into their issue and fulfill their genuine demands.