'Congress Will Come To Power At Centre If...': Kharge's Prediction In Poll-Bound Rajasthan

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has stated that if his party retains power in Rajasthan, it will also take power at the Centre in 2024.

Mallikarjun Kharge predicts a dual victory for the Congress, both in Rajasthan and at the Centre. ( Image Source :X/@kharge )

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge asserted on Monday (October 16) that if the Congress retains its government in Rajasthan, it will also seize power at the Centre in 2024. Kharge accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of emulating the Congress's work and vying for "copyright" but expressed confidence that the public would remember the Congress's achievements.

राजस्थान में हमारी कांग्रेस सरकार को गिराने की भाजपा ने पूरी कोशिश की। कई राज्यों में पिछले दरवाज़े से भाजपा ने सरकारें गिराकर अपनी सरकार बनाई।

पर राजस्थान की मज़बूत जनता ने, वीर जनता ने, कांग्रेस की सरकार गिरने नहीं दी तभी उनको यहाँ पर हमारी जन-कल्याण की सैंकड़ों योजनाओं का… pic.twitter.com/865SvWKgFX

— Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) October 16, 2023

Kharge addressed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent mention of a "red diary" containing financial irregularities of the Rajasthan government led by Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot during the launch of an awareness campaign for the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) in Baran district. This diary, according to Kharge, predicts the Congress's return to power in Rajasthan following the upcoming Assembly elections.

"It is written in that red diary that the Congress will form its government again in Rajasthan after the upcoming Assembly polls," he was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

Kharge asserted that if the Congress government is reinstated in Rajasthan, it will take power at the Centre in 2024. Despite the people's mandate, he accused the BJP and its MPs from Rajasthan of failing to secure funds and water for the state.

Kharge asserted that "if the Congress government is formed in Rajasthan again, the party will come to power at the Centre in 2024".

Furthermore, Kharge emphasised the Congress's demand for a nationwide caste census and refuted Modi's claim that such an exercise would be used to divide people. He accused the BJP of dividing people based on religion and caste.

"We sincerely want women to come forward. It is the Congress that gave the country a woman prime minister, a woman (Lok Sabha) speaker etc. Everything was done by us first. You (BJP) are copying us. You want to claim copyright but the public will not give you any copyright. The public remembers and will remember the work done by the Congress," Kharge said, as reported by PTI. 

Kharge also questioned Modi's parliamentary attendance and claimed that, despite promises, the Prime Minister ignored the ERCP. The previous BJP government in Rajasthan proposed the ambitious project to address drinking water and irrigation needs in 13 districts.

Kharge urged voters to teach the BJP a lesson ahead of the November 25 Rajasthan Assembly elections. He emphasised the Congress' commitment to understanding the poor's plight and introduced various schemes and programmes to assist them. Kharge also criticised the Centre for its lack of support for Rajasthan, accusing the Prime Minister and BJP MPs of betraying the state's people.

He also accused the BJP of destabilising elected regimes and exploiting defections to form governments where popular mandates were not favourable. Kharge, on the other hand, praised Gehlot for saving the Congress government in Rajasthan with popular support.

Kharge viewed Modi's recent visit to Uttarakhand and a photo of him worshipping at Parvati Kund as an act of self-aggrandizement. He claimed that the Prime Minister's attire, which included a jacket underneath his white suit, was a display of his "greatness."

Kharge claimed that the Congress was the only party that had done significant development work for the poor, citing the Indira Gandhi Canal, AIIMS hospitals, and major dams throughout the country. He claimed that there was a growing wealth disparity and that those benefiting from the nation's assets were "friends" of the Prime Minister.

He also suggested that there were disagreements between Raje and the BJP's central leadership. Gehlot emphasised the potential benefits of the ERCP for eastern Rajasthan, making it a pressing household concern.

"You are angry with Vasundhara Raje, but why are you cheating the public?" the chief minister asked, PTI said.

Rajasthan Congress Chief Govind Singh Dotasra urged party members to launch a door-to-door campaign about the ERCP to raise public awareness.

Notably, senior Congress leader Sachin Pilot was not present because he was taking a Territorial Army exam in Delhi.

The ERCP has been a hot topic in eastern Rajasthan, and Gehlot emphasised the schemes and programmes launched by his administration, expressing confidence that the Congress would retain power in the state.