‘My mom is more Indian than many people I’ve seen’
Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the BJP was panicking because it had seen the difference in the Congress’s approach to the May 12 assembly polls, as his party had relied on its local leadership because the fight was for Karnataka’s spirit, which he said the Rashtriya Swayamasevak Sangh was trying to capture.
Addressing a press conference on the last day of campaigning for the state polls, Gandhi said he welcomed union ministers, 19 of whom have been pressed into campaigning by the BJP, “because, frankly, it helps us.”
“This is a fight between the spirit of Karnataka and the RSS and we are very clear, we don’t want a barrage of leaders from outside this state to come and fight for us,” Gandhi said.
Gandhi said the RSS was trying to take over the state, “it is attacking Basavanna[the 12th century philosopher credited with having formed the Lingayat sect], your language, your culture and you’re wonderful food...” Gandhi said.
Responding to PM Modi’s
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statement that rapes should not be politicised, Gandhi said: “It is absolutely a political issue. It is a fundamental issue because the treatment of 50% of our population is a political issue.”
Regarding the questions raised on his mother’s citizenship, Gandhi said, “My mother is Italian, but she also lived a large part of her life in India. She is more Indian than many people I have seen. She has sacrificed and suffered for this country .... ” he said.
BJP spokesperson S Prakash said the statements showed Gandhi’s immaturity. “If they were really dependent on the local leadership, what was the need for him to have campaigned in the state over the past few months? ... The fact is, they do not have a single leader who can attract even 100 people ...”