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NEW DELHI — Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi in reply to the PM's letter to Phase 3 candidates, saying that their 'guarantees are simple and votebank is every Indian.
Posting his letter on X, Kharge said, "...In your letter, you claim that reservation will be taken away from SC, ST and OBC and given to “our (Congress's) votebank. Our votebank is every Indian - the poor, the marginalised, the women, the aspirational youth, the labour class, the Dalits and the Adivasis."
Kharge said that voters are intelligent enough to read and understand by themselves what the Congress has written in its manifesto and what guarantees they have promised. "Our guarantees are so simple and clear, that we don’t have to explain it to them," he said.
The Congress chief said, "We have heard you and the Home Minister say that Congress is practising appeasement politics. The only appeasement policy that we have seen in the last 10 years is the appeasement of Chinese by you and your ministers. Even today, you refuse to call China as ‘Ghuspaithiye’, instead on June 19, 2020, you said Na Koi Ghusa Hai, Na Hi Koi Ghus Aaya hai, insulting the supreme sacrifice of 20 Indian soldiers in Galwan. Your public ‘Clean Chit’ to China, has weakened India’s case and made it more belligerent. Even as tensions escalate due to repeated Chinese transgressions and construction of military infrastructure near LAC in Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh and Uttarakhand, the imports of Chinese goods to India has (sic) increased by 54.76 % in the past 5 years alone and has crossed 101 billion dollar in 2023-24."
He said in his letter, "I saw the letter written by you to all the NDA candidates about what they need to communicate to the voters. From the tone and content of the letter it seems that there is a lot of desperation and worry in you which is leading you to use language that does not suit the office of the Prime Minister. The letter makes it look like the lies in your speeches are not having the effect you intended and now you want your candidates to amplify your lies. Repeating a lie a thousand times will not make it the truth."
Khage said that the Congress manifesto ensures "Yuva Nyay - We assure jobs to the youth. Nari Nyay - to empower the women and girls of our country. Kisan Nyay - to empower the farmers. Shramik Nyay to empower the labour and workers."
He further said, "Your letter lies that Congress wants to bring Inheritance Tax when it is your former Finance Minister and your party leaders who have repeatedly mentioned they want Inheritance Tax. People can see these speeches and comments of your leaders online."
The letter also mentioned, "I see from your letter that you are worried by the low turnout of voters in the first two phases of the elections. It shows people are not enthusiastic about your policies or your campaign speeches. This is not because of the summer heat, but because the poor have been burnt by your policies. You have appealed to your karyakartas to mobilise voters in the name of religion. If the voters are not keen to vote for you, do not blame your karyakartas. You are not interested in talking about unemployment and unprecedented price rise, that is affecting our people. You are not interested in talking about the increasing atrocities on women by your leaders."