Priyanka Gandhi: NDA trying to form Bihar govt through 'vote chori'

Bettiah: Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Wednesday alleged that the NDA wants to form the government in Bihar through ‘vote chori‘ and claimed that the names of 65 lakh people, including women, have been deleted from the electoral rolls through SIR.

She alleged that the “NDA is indulging in vote theft” because it is aware of the fact that the “people are fed up with its 20-year rule”.

Addressing back-to-back rallies in Valmiki Nagar and Chanpatia in West Champaran district, the Congress general secretary claimed that the current situation in the country is akin to the British Raj, and raised suspicion whether the country would continue to witness elections in the future.

“My brother Rahul today gave an account of ‘vote theft’ in Haryana,” she said, alluding to the allegations of the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha of widespread and systematic irregularities in assembly elections in the northern state in 2024 when Congress faced a defeat against the BJP.

“NDA will destroy everything… It is not clear whether there will be elections in the future… Why are you silent? Chase them out of power,” Vadra told people attending the rally.

Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, she said that he seems to be more concerned about the absence of RJD leader and INDIA bloc’s CM candidate Tejashwi Yadav‘s photograph from a Congress poster than controlling crime and corruption, and educating the youth.

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“Whereas, Modi himself does not keep Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar alongside him on stages of political rallies,” she claimed.

NDA seems to be more concerned about the future of Rahul Gandhi and Tejashwi Yadav than that of Bihar’s youth, Vadra quipped.

The Congress leader said that people of Bihar will receive free treatment of up to Rs 25 lakh if the INDIA bloc is voted to power.

“We will try our best to give at least one government job per poor family… We will fill up lakhs of vacancies in various departments,” she said.

Vadra claimed that all factories were being set up in Gujarat, the home state of Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and attacked the NDA, saying, “Try to understand their intentions… Those who hand over land and resources to corporates will never work for the poor.”

She alleged that the “Modi government works for Ambani and Adani for five years” and comes back to people during elections.

She alleged that farmers of Bihar were unable to increase their income due to taxes and high input cost in agriculture.

“Under ‘Modi Empire’, farmers don’t get MSP and they spend their entire lives repaying loans while the liabilities of a few businessmen are waived off,” she alleged.

“High unemployment rate in Bihar is forcing youth to migrate out of the state for work,” Vadra added.

She said that if the INDIA bloc forms the government in the state, it would provide either a house or 3.5 decimals of land to every poor family and the registration of the properties would be under women’s names.

She said that the NDA brought the Agnipath scheme in defence recruitment under which “youth will work for 4 years and remain jobless thereafter”.

Vadra said that number of work days under MGNREGA would be doubled and the Old Pension Scheme would be reintroduced if the INDIA bloc forms the government in Bihar.

She said 30 per cent reservation for EBCs and 20 per cent for SCs will be ensured in panchayats and civic bodies to ensure social justice.

Stressing the need for a “tolerant government that would listen to people’s problems”, she recalled an incident when she accompanied her late father Rajiv Gandhi to a village in Amethi assembly seat in UP, when a woman scolded the former PM for not providing tap water connection, and he handled the matter with patience and politeness.

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