Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal came down heavily on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his controversial remarks made during a visit to the United States. Hitting out at the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Goyal alleged that Rahul has “become a fake news and propaganda machine” against India.
“He (Rahul Gandhi) has again and again defamed India in his international visits. It seems as if he goes abroad to criticise Indians and his motherland. I condemn the kind of statements and the people whom he is meeting during his foreign trips,” said Goyal.
During his recent visit to the US, Gandhi made several critical comments on a number of topics in India including on democracy, reservation, Lok Sabha polls, among others.
“We find Rahul Gandhi making obnoxious statements on international soil and the whole Congress party is aligned with his thinking. He makes statements that India is not safe for a certain section of people, that people do not have a right to practice their faith and that Indians are casteists,” said Goyal.
Gandhi, at the Georgetown University in the US, had on September 9 alleged that the Lok Sabha polls were not fought on the same footing. “The Election Commission was doing what they wanted. The entire campaign was structured so that Mr Modi could carry out his agenda across the country, with different designs for different states,” he claimed.
He also stated that his party will think of scrapping reservations when India is a fair place, which is not the case right now. Gandhi has alleged that democracy in India for the last 10 years was broken, but now it is fighting back.
Goyal said that the remarks are a well-thought agenda and deliberate attempt of the Congress party. “Rahul Gandhi should apologise not only to the country but to every single citizen of India who has felt hurt,” he added.
As he addressed members of the Indian diaspora, Gandhi said that the fight in India is about whether a person, as a Sikh, is going to be allowed to wear a turban in India and would be able to visit a Gurdwara. A huge uproar erupted over this statement.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, reacting to the remarks delivered by Gandhi, said it is “extremely shameful” that the Leader of Opposition is hurting the dignity of India by saying “misleading, baseless and factless things” during his foreign tour.
“He has said that the Sikh community in India is not allowed to wear turbans in Gurdwaras, they are being prevented from behaving according to their religion. This is completely baseless and far from the truth,” said Singh.
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