Electoral bonds 'world's biggest scam': Rahul Gandhi in Hyderabad

Hyderabad: In a scathing attack against the BJP-led Central government, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday alleged that the electoral bonds scheme was the "world's biggest scam" and claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has "his people" in the election commission.

The Supreme Court had struck down the electoral bonds scheme as unconstitutional in a ruling in February.

Addressing a rally on the outskirts of Hyderabad a day after the release of Congress's manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls, he termed the Enforcement Directorate as "Extortion Directorate".

"What earlier used to be called as Enforcement Directorate, has become Extortion Directorate today. BJP is running the world's biggest washing machine," he said.

"The country's most corrupt ministers and most corrupt leaders stand with Narendra Modi ji. Narendra Modi ji has his people in the Election Commission also," he said.

The list of electoral bonds scheme shows that a company is threatened by the CBI and then the company hands over crores of rupees to the BJP. The company then gets infrastructure projects worth crores of rupees, he alleged.

The bank accounts of Congress have been frozen, but the Congress does not fear the BJP, he said.

Congress has defeated BJP's "B team" (BRS) in Telangana and it is now going to defeat the "A team" in Delhi (BJP) in the coming elections, he said.

Further charging that the BJP wants to scrap the Constitution, he claimed that the Congress would never let that happen.

"This fight is for safeguarding the Constitution and democracy. Narendra Modi ji works for three-four per cent of people. He has the media, money, intelligence agencies, CBI , ED and everything. We have truth and people's love. Truth and people achieve victory," he said.

Attacking the previous BRS regime in Telangana over the phone-tapping allegations, Gandhi alleged that Modi and BJP is doing what the previous Chief Minister of Telangana (K Chandrasekhar Rao) did. Rao had put the police and other agencies to wrong use, he alleged.

Phones of thousands of people were tapped and the government data and computers were thrown into a river following the change of government, he said.

Gandhi also claimed that 30 farmers commit suicide in the country every day. He alleged that Modi has waived loans to the tune of Rs 16 lakh crore of the rich, while not even one rupee of farmers' loans was waived.

He also alleged that after Modi's government assumed office, crores of people became poor in the country.

Rahul Gandhi, who observed that the Congress government is implementing the promises made to people of Telangana before recent assembly polls, said he would rush to help the people of the state whenever they seek his help.

Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, his cabinet colleagues and other party leaders attended the rally.

Speaking on the occasion, Revanth Reddy alleged that the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre did not implement the assurances made to Telangana in the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act.

BJP should be handed out a defeat similar to the one handed out to the BRS in the state, he said.

Referring to K Chandrasekhar Rao's attack against his government for agriculture crops allegedly 'withering away' and non-implementation of promises made to people, Revanth Reddy took exception to the language used.

"I had said earlier and I am saying now. You did not build double bedroom houses for the poor. But, I will build a double bedroom house for you in Cherlapally jail (in Hyderabad). Lakhs of Congress workers would take the responsibility to build a double bedroom house for you (in Cherlapally jail)," he said.

Rao had demanded that the government take immediate steps to provide relief to the ryots and vowed to fight on behalf of the people and attacked the ruling Congress over alleged farmers' distress and non-implementation of its election promises.

Speaking to reporters at the district headquarters town of Sircilla after a visit to the fields where the crops allegedly withered away, he alleged that the situation was due to the "incompetence" and mismanagement of the Congress government.