Jharkhand polls: Rahul says Constitution ‘under attack’, BJP ‘controlling’ EC, ED, CBI

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, continuing with his rallies to “save” the Constitution, said at one in Jharkhand’s Ranchi on Saturday (October 19) that it was under attack by the BJP, which was controlling all crucial institutions such as the Election Commission, bureaucracy, and central agencies such as ED and CBI.

“The Constitution is under constant attack from all sides, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, and it needs to be protected,” Rahul alleged while addressing the “Samvidhan Samman Sammelan” (Respect for Constitution Rally) ahead of the Jharkhand Assembly polls.

Rahul also said that no force can stop the caste census and removal of the 50 per cent cap on the reservation.

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No force can stop caste census: Rahul

In a no-holds-barred attack on the BJP, the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha accused the BJP of “controlling the Election Commission, the CBI, the ED, the Income-Tax department, the bureaucracy, and the judiciary”.

“The BJP also controls funds and institutions, but we possess honesty. The Congress fought the Lok Sabha elections without money,” he claimed.

Rahul said the caste census is a “medium for getting social X-ray” but PM Narendra Modi was opposed to it. “However, no force can stop caste census, institutional survey, and removal of 50 per cent cap on reservation despite no media, judiciary support,” he said.

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INDIA bloc seat-sharing

This was Rahul’s first visit to Jharkhand after the Assembly poll schedule was announced.

The election will be held in two phases — on November 13 and 20 — and vote counting will take place on November 23.

Earlier in the day, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren said the INDIA bloc will contest the polls together, and the Congress and the JMM will field candidates in 70 of 81 seats.

Seat-sharing talks are on with alliance partners — the RJD and the Left parties — for the remaining 11 seats, he added. The RJD has expressed displeasure over the numbers has said it has kept its options open.

(With agency inputs)