30

Apr

Rare Display of Statesmanship by Kharge

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Today’s Edition

New Delhi, 30 April 2024

Dr Satish Misra

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It was no ordinary gesture as it reflected the noblest traditions of a democratic polity.  

 

Congress president Malikarjun Kharge went out of his way to rise above the partisan lines when he took an unprecedented step expected only in matured democracies by writing a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that he "would be more than happy to meet you in person to explain our Nyay Patra".

Article at a Glance

 

In a rare display of statesmanship, Congress President Malikarjun Kharge wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, offering to meet him in person to clarify the Congress' Nyay Patra manifesto.

This gesture aimed to reduce the escalating political tensions sparked by Modi's remarks on the Congress manifesto, which alleged a wealth redistribution plan. Kharge's letter refuted these claims, emphasizing that the manifesto focuses on a nationwide socio-economic and caste census to strengthen affirmative action.

He also criticized Modi's government for favoring corporates and ignoring the plight of the poor, women, and marginalized communities. By taking the high road, Kharge demonstrated a commitment to democratic values and a desire to restore balance to the increasingly acrimonious relationship between the ruling party and the opposition.

Kharge’s letter is an earnest effort to bring down heightened political temperatures arising out of the massive row triggered by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's remarks on the Congress manifesto and restore some balance in the inimical relationship between the Opposition and the ruling party as it is expected in the world’s biggest democracy.   

 

In an all-out attack on the main Opposition party, the Prime Minister has alleged that the Congress has a wealth redistribution plan to put in motion if it comes to power. Under this alleged plan, private property, including houses and jewellery, will be taken away and redistributed, he has said. Even mangalsutra - a jewellery worn by women as a sign of their marriage - won't be spared, the Prime Minister has claimed.

 

The Prime Minister alleged that when the Congress was in power under Dr Manmohan Singh, it had said Muslims have the first right to the country's wealth. "This means that they will gather this property and distribute it among people who have more children, among infiltrators. Will your hard-earned money be given to infiltrators? Do you accept this? The Congress manifesto is saying this."

 

The Congress has denied these allegations. Its manifesto says that if elected, the Congress will conduct a nationwide socio-economic and caste census. "Congress will conduct a nationwide Socio-Economic and Caste Census to enumerate the castes and sub-castes and their socio-economic conditions. Based on the data, we will strengthen the agenda for affirmative action." The manifesto does not say anything about a plan to redistribute private property.

 

The Prime Minister, however, has doubled down, repeating his charge in rally after rally.

 

In his letter addressed to the Prime Minister, Kharge writes he is "neither shocked nor surprised by your language or your speeches". "It was expected that you and other leaders from your party would start speaking in this manner after you saw the dismal performance of the BJP in the first phase of the elections," he adds in the letter, shared on X.

 

Describing the Narendra Modi government as "suit-boot ki sarkar", Kharge alleges that it works for the corporates "whose taxes you reduced, while salaried class pays higher taxes". "The poor pay GST even on food and salt and rich corporations claim GST refunds. That is why when we talk of inequality between rich and poor, you are purposely equating it with Hindu and Muslim. Our manifesto is for the people of India whether they are Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Sikh Jain or Buddhist," he writes.

 

Kharge has accused the Prime Minister of ignoring atrocities faced by poor and backward women in the country. "Today, you talk about their mangalsutra. Isn't your government responsible for the atrocities against women in Manipur, atrocities against Dalit girls, garlanding of rapists?"

 

"When farmers are committing suicides under your government, how are you protecting their wives and children? Please read about the Nari Nyay which we will be implementing when we come to power," he adds.

 

The letter says it has become a "habit" for the Prime Minister "to seize on few words taken out of context and create a communal divide".

 

"You are lowering the dignity of the chair by speaking in this manner. When all of this is over, people will remember that the Prime Minister of the country used such vulgar language for fear of losing an election," Kharge writes.

 

The Congress president urges the Prime Minister not to "get carried away" by his supporters clapping at his speeches. "They are not allowing you to hear the crores of right-thinking citizens who are disappointed by your speeches," he writes.

 

"The Congress Nyay Patra aims at providing Nyay to the youth, women, farmers, labourers and marginalised people across all castes and communities. You are being misinformed by your advisors about things that are not even written in our manifesto. I would be more than happy to meet you in person to explain our Nyay Patra so that as the Prime Minister of the country you don't make any false statements," the Congress president writes before signing off.

 

The BJP is yet to respond to the Congress president's letter.

 

Earlier, soon after the Prime Minister's remarks on Sunday, Kharge had described it as a "hate speech" aimed at diverting attention from key poll issues.

 

The BJP had responded that the Prime Minister had called a spade a spade and echoed people's sentiments. BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia told reporters that the opposition is in pain as the Prime Minister has shown them the mirror of its past.

 

The Congress has flagged the Prime Minister's remarks to the Election Commission of India, seeking a response from the BJP leadership. The poll body has also notified the Congress leadership, seeking its response to a BJP complaint against Rahul Gandhi.

 

While the relationship between the ruling party and the opposition has turned from a relationship between competing opponents to a relationship between two sworn enemies, the Congress president has been behaving like an elder statesman who is keener to save democracy than merely scoring a point.

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