Rahul makes united Oppn pitch, attacks govt on jobs
BJP says parties huddled together face corruption cases
Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi launched a fresh attempt to unite the opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday, but the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party hit back at the effort as “an alliance of scared people” facing corruption charges.
Speaking at a meeting of 12 opposition parties, Gandhi said the BJP had failed to keep its promise to create jobs and fight corruption, while its ideological parent, the RSS, was busy subverting the constitution and embedding its own people in key institutions, including the judiciary, bureaucracy and media.
The meeting, attended by all the major opposition parties except Tamil Nadu’s DMK, brought together traditional rivals such as the Samajwadi Party and the Bahujan Samaj Party as well as Trinamool Congress and the Communists.
“If we fight together, these people (the BJP) will not be seen anywhere,” Gandhi told the Sanjhi Virasat Bachao, or Save Composite Culture, meeting convened by Janata Dal (U) leader Sharad Yadav.
Rahul Gandhi’s comments mark yet another opposition attempt to unite against the BJP, which has been emboldened by a string of state election victories.