Will not allow anyone to harm Constitution: Rahul Gandhi

Hyderabad, May  (IANS) Alleging that the BJP wants to finish off the Constitution, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday vowed to protect it.

Asserting the Constitution protects the poor, weaker sections, Dalits, tribals, backwards classes, farmers, and workers, he said by talking about changing the Constitution, the BJP and RSS were attacking not just the poor but the very spirit of the nation.

Addressing public meetings in Medak and Medchal Malkajgiri Lok Sabha constituencies in support of Congress candidates, he claimed that this is the first election where the BJP and the RSS have clearly said that if they win, they will change the Constitution, scrap it, and finish it off.

"If India’s poor feel empowered, it is because of the Constitution. This is not an ordinary book. This is the voice of your heart,” he said, displaying a copy of the Constitution.

Rahul Gandhi said Congress and crores of people fought and gave their blood to prepare the Constitution.

"(Mahatma) Gandhi ji, (Dr BR) Ambedkar ji and (Prime Minister Jawaharlal) Nehru ji for years fought, shed their sweat and blood to give this book," he said.

He also claimed that the BJP wants to scrap reservations while Congress wants to increase it beyond 50 per cent. He said the Modi government privatised public sector undertakings and encouraged the contract system to do away with reservation. He said if voted to power, the Congress would conduct a caste survey so that the backward classes, Dalits, tribals, minorities and poor from the general category, who are in the majority, know what their population and their share and power is.

He claimed that this would change politics forever as the truth would come out before all.

"Two to three per cent people are running the country. All institutions, companies and government are in their hands,” he said.

Alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi worked to benefit 22-25 billionaires, he said that the time has come to make crores of lakhpatis.

"We are going to do a historic work which you have not even dreamt of. No government in the world has done this and after this, every government will do it," he said.

Exuding confidence that the INDIA bloc will form the government at the Centre, he said it would make a list of poor families and deposit Rs 8,500 every month in the bank account of a woman of every poor household.

"With one stroke, we will eliminate poverty in India and Telangana. When you spend money on buying clothes, medicines and other essentials, these goods will be manufactured by India’s small and large companies. Your children will get jobs in the same companies. In a way, we will be jumpstarting the Indian economy,” he said.

Alleging that PM Narendra Modi made crores of youth unemployed, he said the coming government will launch the new scheme 'Pehli Naukri Pakki'. All unemployed youth will get jobs in public and private sector companies, government hospitals and government for one year with the best training and they will be paid Rs 1 lakh each.

Claiming that there are 30 lakh government vacancies, he promised that the INDIA bloc government would start filling these vacancies from August 15.

Accusing PM Modi of waiving off loans to the tune of Rs 16 lakh crore of billionaires but not of farmers, Rahul Gandhi promised that farm loan waiver would be the first thing their government would do. He also reiterated the promises to give a legal guarantee to Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farmers, to increase the wages of MNREGA workers from Rs 250 to Rs 400 per day, and to double the income of ASHA and Anganwadi workers.

Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, Congress candidate from Medak, Neelam Madhu and party candidate from Malkajgiri, Sunitha Reddy were present.