Joining Congress’ election campaign in Haryana, Leader of Opposition and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took tore into the ruling BJP, accusing it of “finishing” state’s economy and failing to create jobs, which he claimed has pushed the state’s youth to seek opportunities abroad.
“Why are the youth of Haryana going to the US?” he asked the crowd, narrating his experience from a recent visit to Dallas, USA. “I saw 15-20 people crammed into a single room. A young man told me that many of them took loans or even sold their land to pay around Rs 30-50 lakhs to come to the US,” he said addressing his first public rally in Assandh of Karnal on Thursday.
Accusing the Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “systematically” ending the employment system of the country, he highlighted how Haryana’s young individuals found it impossible to establish businesses or find sustainable employment.
“When I visited Karnal, I witnessed a heart-wrenching scene of a child screaming at a computer, asking his father to return from the US during a video call,” he shared, pointing out that the BJP-led Haryana government had destroyed not just the economy but the very dreams of its youth.
“This government has finished the state and left its young people with no future,” he asserted. Gandhi vowed that a Congress government would work for everyone, including implementing a caste census and generating employment opportunities to prevent the exodus of young people.
He reiterated Congress’s commitment to conducting a caste census, stating that this would ensure that nearly 90% of the country’s population receives their “rightful due.” “If this much of the population does not get its share of resources, then the Constitution cannot be preserved or protected,” Gandhi emphasized. He argued that the vast majority of the nation remains on the fringes of economic power, with little to no representation in the corporate world, adding that the caste census would be a crucial policy framework for an inclusive Congress government.
“Our government will be for everyone,” Gandhi proclaimed, exuding confidence that Congress would sweep the Haryana elections. Rahul Gandhi also slammed the BJP government for failure to tackle the issue of drug menace saying,” “There is a drug problem in Haryana. Youths told me – ‘Rahul ji, the drug problem is escalating in Haryana”.
Gandhi also raised the issue of protests by wrestlers of Haryana at Delhi against the then Wrestling Federation of India Chief, saying, “ Bajrang Punia is sitting here, he and people like him bring gold medals. They work hard 24 hours a day, because they want a gold medal, to bring glory to Haryana and India. We want Haryana and India to be recognized all over the world. We don’t win gold medals for ourselves, we win gold medals for India. But What happened to him? They’ve destroyed all the athletes. His sisters are facing sexual harassment, and the one responsible is being protected”.
During his second rally in Barwala, Hisar, Rahul Gandhi took aim at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, criticizing him for remaining silent on the growing drug problem in Haryana and the issue of farmers being forced to sell their crops below the Minimum Support Price (MSP). Gandhi guaranteed MSP for farmers and accused the union government of favouring wealthy industrialists while neglecting the poor and farmers. He also reiterated his promise of providing Rs 1 lakh per year to impoverished families if Congress wins power at the national level, framing the upcoming elections as a fight to safeguard the Constitution.
However, the BJP launched a fierce attack on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for campaigning in support of Shamsher Singh Gogi. The party accused Gogi of openly stating his intention to “fill his coffers” and those of his supporters if the Congress were to come to power in Haryana. In a post on X, the BJP said, “Rahul Gandhi is kicking off his rally in Haryana for a candidate who, just two days ago, blatantly declared he will loot the state. Is this the kind of leadership Haryana deserves?”
