Ensure Level Playing Field in Campaign, Congress Urges EC

New Delhi/Ranchi: The Congress on Friday complained to the Election Commission against the alleged grounding of party leader Rahul Gandhi's helicopter in poll-bound Jharkhand and sought its urgent intervention in ensuring a level playing field in poll campaigning.

In a letter to the EC, Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh alleged that Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi's chopper was not allowed to take off due to restrictions leading to his public meetings getting either delayed or cancelled.

“There should be a level-playing field in campaigning. The PM's campaign cannot take precedence over that of all others. Today Rahul Gandhi got delayed in Jharkhand on this account,” Ramesh said in a post on X.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday yet again attacked the BJP for “conspiring to destroy the Indian Constitution”, and also targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that he only “served the interests of billionaires” at the expense of the poor people of India.

Addressing election rallies for the second phase in Jharkhand, he claimed that while the Opposition INDIA bloc was fighting to protect the Constitution, the BJP was trying to dump it in the trash bin.

He also said that Mr Modi worked for the welfare of billionaires in the country and privatised institutions, colleges, industries, hospitals and ports, not for the poor.

Speaking at a rally at Mahagama in Godda district, he asserted that he was not “afraid” of Mr Modi or “his 56-inch chest”. Mr Gandhi said: “He is a puppet of billionaires.” He also accused the PM of giving lessons to people during the day and enjoying the weddings of industrialists at night.

The Congress leader claimed that the Uddhav Thackeray-led government in Maharashtra was toppled to grab land and that Mr Modi was trying to hand over land worth Rs 1 lakh crores in Mumbai’s Dharavi slum to an industrialist.

“PM Modi says Rahul is flashing a red book. Its content is important, not the colour. Had you read it, you would not have been spreading hatred and dividing society”, Mr Gandhi said.

“It is a fight of ideology between the INDIA bloc and the BJP-RSS. We are protecting the Constitution and the BJP-RSS is trying to dump it in the trash bin. They are spreading violence and trying to divide society on the basis of caste, creed and religion,” he alleged.

Advocating the need for a nationwide caste census, the senior Congress leader claimed it would change the face of India. The caste census would reveal positions of tribals, Dalits and OBCs in various institutions, he said, adding a caste census is bound to happen. “We will demolish the 50 per cent reservation ceiling, PM Modi can do whatever he can,” he added.

He also targeted the BJP over the arrest of JMM leader Hemant Soren, and said: “A tribal CM elected by you was put behind bars in Jharkhand.”

In another rally at Bermo in Bokaro district, he said that the Constitution was the “soul” of the country. “Prime Minister Modi says it is blank inside. Look at this, it has content. He says Rahul shows a red book; its content is important and not the colour”, Mr Gandhi said, displaying a copy of the Constitution.

“PM Modi wants to destroy the Constitution, but no power can do it,” Mr Gandhi noted at the rally.

Mr Modi had made the country’s youth unemployed through GST and demonetisation, he alleged.

“If we are voted to power in Jharkhand, we will raise the reservation of STs to 28 per cent from the present 26 per cent, SCs to 12 per cent from 10 per cent at present and OBCs to 27 per cent from the existing 14 per cent,” he claimed.

The BJP has been accusing the Congress leader of displaying a “fake” copy of the Constitution with blank pages at an event in Maharashtra recently.