Rahul attacks Modi, says BJP and RSS creating fear in people

Rahul Gandhi said the philosophy of being fearless has been there in the Congress party.

New Delhi, Jan 11: Mounting a scathing attack on BJP and RSS, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused them of creating an atmosphere of "fear" among the people, asserting the Congress will defeat their ideology and remove the saffron party from power.

Observing that it is a clash between two philosophies, the Congress vice president said while his party's philosophy asks people to be fearless, BJP's is to create "fear" and "scare" the people. "This is a fight between two philosophies. This is not a new fight. This fight is thousands of years old. The Congress party's philosophy says do not fear. The other philosophy says instill fear and scare them," he said.

"You look at BJP's policies. Their entire aim is to scare the people of the country. Fear terrorism, maoism, demonetisation, scare the media. In two-three months, in the entire country, they have spread this fear," Gandhi said.

He said while the Congress party told labourers and farmers to be fearless come what may, they will be guaranteed 100 days employment and none will be able to take away their land without paying the market price for it, like Narendra Modi "snatched" away their money and land. Gandhi said in states like Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, where Adivasis have stood up for their land, water and forest rights, they have been shot down.

"These people (BJP and RSS) think that they can rule by spreading hatred and fear among the people. Congress party will defeat and remove them from power. We do not hate them (BJP and RSS) but we will defeat their ideology," Gandhi said. He said Congress party has always stood for dispelling the fear and asserted that India is strong and the country and its people do not to fear anything in this world.

"The basis of their politics, their structure, is to change fear into anger. This is not happening for the last two or two-and-a-half years but this has been going on for thousands of years. And they (BJP and RSS) are the ones doing it. This ideology is doing it","he said.

Gandhi said the philosophy of being fearless has been there in the Congress party and he has seen it in the correspondence between Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru for not fearing the British, during Green revolution, where farmers were asked to be fearless and trust themselves, bank nationalisation and under the UPA dispensation when the message "do not fear and we are there with you" was given by way of Land acquisation bill, Right to Food Act and MREGA.

PTI