31 March,2024 04:02 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Rahul Gandhi at INDIA bloc rally in New Delhi. Pic/PTI
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday accused PM Narendra Modi and Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) for fixing the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. "They are trying to do "match-fixing" in the Lok Sabha elections and if BJP succeeds in its endeavours, the country's Constitution will be changed and people's rights taken away," Gandhi said.
The former Congress President was addressing the INDIA bloc's 'Lok Tantra bachao' (Save Democracy) rally at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi. "This is not an ordinary election but one to save the country's democracy and Constitution," he added.
"When pressure is put on umpires and captain, players are bought off and the match is won, in cricket, it is called match-fixing. We have Lok Sabha polls ahead of us. Who selected the umpires? Before the match started, two players were arrested," Rahul Gandhi said, apparently pointing at the election commissioners and the recent arrest of AAP leader and Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal.
The BJP is raising the slogans of winning more than 400 Lok Sabha seats, but without EVMs, match-fixing, pressure on opposition leaders and buying the media, they can't cross even 180 seats, Gandhi claimed. He asserted that BJP government has frozen the bank accounts of the biggest opposition party in the country (Congress) just ahead of elections.
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"Two chief ministers are arrested. What kind of election is this," Gandhi alleged, adding, "Match-fixing is being done by PM Modi along with three-four billionaires. This is being done to snatch the Constitution from the poor," Gandhi said.
In the INDIA bloc rally organised ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, at the Ramlila Maidan in New Delhi, leaders including Sonia Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal's wife Sunita Kejriwal were present. From Maharashtra, leaders including Sharad Pawar, Uddhav Thackeray, Sanjay Raut attended the rally.
Other INDIA bloc leaders present at the rally were Tejaswi Yadav, Akhilesh Yadav, former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren's wife Kalpana Soren among others.
(With PTI Inputs)
