Rahul Gandhi Narrowly Escapes Mishap as Dais Partially Collapses During Bihar Rally

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi narrowly avoided a mishap on Monday when a portion of the stage at an election rally in Paliganj, Bihar, caved in. Gandhi was campaigning for RJD president Lalu Prasad's daughter, Misa Bharti, contesting the Patliputra Lok Sabha seat. Bharti quickly grabbed his hand, helping him regain stability.

They were seen reassuring security personnel that he was unharmed. The incident occurred as Gandhi arrived with other party leaders. Footage of the event was shared by the Press Trust of India.

Gandhi took a jibe at Modi's "sent by God" comment during the rally. He remarked, "After June 4, if ED asks Modi about corruption, he will say I don't know anything... I was sent by God." He accused the Prime Minister of creating 22 billionaires while the INDIA bloc government would create crores of millionaires.

Gandhi alleged that Modi waived loans worth Rs 16 lakh crore of his billionaire friends. He accused him of taking money from the poor to benefit corporates who invested it abroad. "This election is to save the country, save the constitution, save democracy, and save reservation for the poor," he said.

Gandhi also promised that an I.N.D.I.A. bloc government would reopen closed industries and fill 30 lakh job vacancies. He made several commitments, including scrapping the Agnipath scheme and depositing Rs 8,500 monthly into every woman's account.

Addressing a rally at Bakhtiyarpur, he remarked, "The INDIA bloc, if voted to power, will throw the Agnipath scheme into the dustbin. Modi Ji has turned soldiers into labourers. The Centre has made two categories in the Army — Agniveer and the others."

Criticism of Agnipath Scheme

The Agnipath scheme, introduced by the Narendra Modi government in 2022, recruits young soldiers, termed 'Agniveers', on a contractual basis for four years, retiring 75 per cent of them without certain benefits. Gandhi criticised this scheme, stating, "If an Agniveer gets injured or martyred, he will neither get a martyr status nor compensation. Why this discrimination?"

The former Congress president further promised financial empowerment for women. "From July, Rs 8,500 will be deposited in women's accounts every month. This will change the financial condition of every family," he stated.

The rallies saw the presence of prominent INDIA bloc leaders, including RJD leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, CPI (ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, and VIP chief Mukesh Sahni.