New Delhi | Union minister Anurag Thakur on Thursday said 14 lawmakers, including Lalu Prasad, have been disqualified after their conviction in criminal cases, but the Gandhi family considers itself above the law and is shedding tears over Rahul Gandhi's suspension from the Lok Sabha.
Thakur countered Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's claims about her family's "sacrifices for the nation", contending that three generations of the Nehru-Gandhi family ruled the country for 60 years while thousands who contributed to the freedom struggle could not even reach Parliament.
Speaking at the Network18's 'Rising India Summit', the information and broadcasting minister accused the Gandhi family of considering itself to be above the law, Parliament, and the nation and "kneeling" before Germany, the US and the UK.
"They forget that it is the people of India who vote. They may shed tears in foreign lands, but here from Gujarat to Tripura to Meghalaya and Nagaland, Uttar PRadesh, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Goa...everywhere BJP has registered victories," the senior BJP leader said.
His remarks came as the Congress termed Rahul Gandhi's disqualification as member of the Lok Sabha in a criminal defamation case as an "attack on democracy".
Thakur alleged that there was a conspiracy within the Congress to "remove" Rahul Gandhi from the political scene.
"Neither Priyanka Gandhi nor any other Congress leader has responded to the charges about a conspiracy to remove Rahul Gandhi from the political scene. Who are these people who want to get rid of Rahul Gandhi? Who has scripted this well thought out conspiracy," Thakur wondered.
The Union minister claimed that only a handful of people have hit the streets in support of Rahul Gandhi after his disqualification from the Lok Sabha.
"People are not ready to come out in his support. How will they (Congress) benefit from this? They have incurred the wrath of the entire backward community. Will people support a person who considers himself above the law," Thakur asked.
He wondered whether the Congress had lost trust in constitutional bodies such as the Supreme Court, Election Commission and the RBI.
"EVMs (electronic voting machines) are good when you win elections, they are bad when you lose," Thakur remarked, in an apparent reference to the plans of the opposition parties to approach the Election Commission on doubts about EVMs.
Thakur also slammed the Congress for comparing Rahul Gandhi with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"Here is a person who has not taken a single holiday in 22 years as head of government. Such is his dedication to the nation that he was back at work within two hours of performing the last rites of his mother," he said.
"And you compare him with Rahul Gandhi, who says I cannot be Savarkar. You cannot be anyone. You have to take a foreign vacation every three months. How can a person who spends holidays in foreign land be dedicated to his nation," Thakur said.
