On 22nd May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi slammed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after he admitted to the fact that the system is designed against the “lower castes”. In a statement during a public meeting at Panchkula, Haryana, in view of the ongoing Lok Sabha Elections 2024, Gandhi said that he has been sitting in the system from the inside since “the day he was born”. He admitted to the fact that the system favours and protects some while attacking others.
#WATCH | Panchkula, Haryana: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi says, "I have been sitting in the system since the day I was born. I understand the system from the inside. You cannot hide the system from me. How it works, whom it favours, how it favours, whom it protects, whom it… pic.twitter.com/AKncvYM08P
— ANI (@ANI) May 22, 2024
Gandhi said, “I have been sitting in the system since the day I was born. I understand the system from the inside. You cannot hide the system from me. How it works, whom it favours, how it favours, whom it protects, whom it attacks, I know everything because I come from inside the system. When my grandmother was the PM, my father was the PM, and when Manmohan Singh was the PM, I used to go to the PM’s house. So I know how the system works from the inside. I can tell you one thing, the system is aligned against the lower castes, severely and on every level…”
PM Modi hits back, how the Congress system has been working against the poor
Replying to his statement during a public meeting given the ongoing Lok Sabha Elections 2024, PM Modi took a swipe at Rahul Gandhi and said that the system the Congress party created destroyed generations of SC/ST and OBC. He was addressing a rally in the Dwarka region of New Delhi where he said, “Sometimes while speaking lies, the truth comes out of the Shehzada’s mouth. Today, Congress’ Shehzada has confessed a big truth. He has admitted that the system that was formed during his grandmother’s, his father’s, and his mother’s time, was severely against the Dalits, backward castes and Adivasis. This system of the Congress destroyed the generations of ST, SC and OBCs. Today, the Shehzada admitted this himself.”
कांग्रेस के शहजादे ने आज मान लिया है कि उनकी दादी, उनके पिताजी और उनकी माताजी के समय जो सिस्टम बना, वो दलितों और पिछड़ों का घोर विरोधी रहा है।
— BJP (@BJP4India) May 22, 2024
– पीएम श्री @narendramodi
पूरा वीडियो देखें: https://t.co/WgVhXyaZdu pic.twitter.com/BwDcSmZcp4
The remarks by Congress’s scion where he admitted the inherent biases within the system reignited a critical discussion about the long-standing inequities faced by the marginalised communities in the country. The acknowledgement by Rahul Gandhi appeared to be unintended. However, it sheds light on the harsh reality that after independence, the system that the Congress Party established, institutionalised and perpetuated discrimination against the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward groups.
Otherwise, there is no other reason that they still face discrimination even after 75 years of independence. The system has deep-rooted problems that were never properly addressed during the Congress rules. These communities were used by the Congress leaders as vote banks while making them suffer consistently to ensure they did not have another choice but to vote for the grand old party with the hope that it would rise them out of their misery.
The ‘system’ that Rahul Gandhi says he was born into, is the ‘Congress system’
The Congress party remained at the helm for a notable period since independence. The system crafted in the name of secularism and equality favoured certain groups while systematically marginalising others. While the system was expected to become a beacon of hope for the marginalised that they would be able to live in equality and get justice on time, it became a tool of oppression.
From education to employment opportunities to access to justice and social welfare, the policies and frameworks set by the Congress governments overlooked the actual needs and rights of the marginalised communities. It served as a hogwash that “solved” the problems only from the tip of the iceberg while leaving the actual problems hidden beneath the waters. Reservations and affirmative actions may look like steps in the right direction; however, they have not been sufficient to dismantle discrimination in society.
The long-term implications of Gandhi’s statement are profound. It highlighted the failures of the past governments. It also underscored the immediate need for a complete system overhaul. The marginalised communities need to come out of the assertion that they need the system for the upliftment. The system indeed needs to be changed to ensure they get all the support but the deep-rooted feeling of helplessness needs to go away.
There are hundreds of schemes launched by the current Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government in the centre that revolve around the upliftment of the marginalised. By understanding how the changing system can be used for their benefit, the marginalised communities need to help themselves while taking support from the government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s commitment to social security and justice for the marginalised and recent admission by Gandhi about years of failed system is more than enough to question the Congress-led previous governments why they failed to effectively end discrimination. Because of their inability to do justice on time, the fight for equality and justice is far from over.
The irony is, that Rahul Gandhi now wants to divide society again on the name of caste and religion once again as he consistently talks about the “caste census”. Gandhis lived on caste politics for decades and the Congress’s prince is continuing the legacy.
