"Extortion": Rahul Gandhi Targets BJP On Electoral Bonds

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the electoral bond scheme and said that the he is trying to defend the biggest corruption scandal.

Addressing public at a roadshow in Kozhikode, Rahul Gandhi said, "I don't know if you saw his interview with ANI yesterday. I don't know if you saw his face, his eyes, he was trying to defend the biggest corruption scandal on the planet through which BJP has got thousands of crores of rupees by extorting them from India's businessmen."

In an interview with ANI, PM Modi said the electoral bonds scheme was aimed at curbing black money in elections and said the opposition wants to run away after making allegations. PM Modi said that "everyone will regret it when there is an honest reflection".

Reacting sharply to the Congress leader, Union Minister and BJP candidate from Thiruvananthapuram, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, said Rahul Gandhi should be the last person to talk about corruption.

"Rahul Gandhi is the last person who should talk about funding and dubious sources of funds. We know Bofors, we know all of those scams that his family is legendary for," Mr Chandrasekhar told ANI.

The Supreme Court in February this year struck down the electoral bond scheme and said it was unconstitutional.

Rahul Gandhi further mentioned that Prime Minister's goal is to distract people from real issues.

"That is why sometimes you will see him doing puja underneath the sea, sometimes he tells the people of India we will bring the Olympics to India. Another time he will say we are going to send one man to the Moon. He never talks about unemployment or price rise. He protects the richest people in the country and forgives their bank loans," he said.

He also alleged that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and BJP are keen on changing the Constitution.

"The RSS and the BJP are trying to destroy India's Constitution and change India's Constitution. The Congress party and the INDIA alliance are trying to save the Constitution," he said.

Earlier today, Rahul Gandhi also said that Agnipath scheme is an insult to the Indian Army and it will be abolished if INDIA bloc comes to power after Lok Sabha polls.

"The Agnipath scheme is an insult to the Indian Army and the brave youth who dream of protecting the country. This is not a plan of the Indian Army but a plan made in Narendra Modi's office which has been imposed on the Army...As soon as the Indian government is formed, we will immediately abolish this scheme and re-implement the old permanent recruitment process," Rahul Gandhi posted on X.

Agnipath Yojana is a recruitment scheme for Indian youth to serve in the Armed Forces. The scheme is called Agnipath and the youth selected under this scheme will be known as Agniveers.

The Agnipath scheme provides for recruiting youths between the age bracket of 17-and-a-half years and 21 years for four years, with a provision to retain 25 per cent of them for 15 more years.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)