Congress leader Mallikarjuna Kharge slams PM Modi over farm laws

Bengaluru: Launching a diatribe against Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the passage of controversial farm Bills in Parliament, veteran Congress leader M Mallikarjuna Kharge on Friday stated that Modi believed in 'Maaro Jawan Maaro Kisan' instead of following the footsteps of the country's second Prime Minister, who gave a famous slogan – 'Jai Jawan Jai Kisan'.

Speaking after paying tributes on the occasion of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee commemorating birth anniversaries of Mahatma Gandhi and late Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri at Karnataka Congress Bhavan here, Kharge charged that Modi's policies - be it demonetisation, hurried implementation of GST, or passage of three Bills - are nothing but it would resonate in future that - Maaro Jawan, Maaro Kisan (Kill youngsters and Kill farmers).

"Modi must read our country's history, at least he should go through Champaran Satyagraha. In this Satyagraha, it was farmers who stood behind Mahatma Gandhi and it heralded changing face of the entire freedom struggle itself," he said.

Training his guns at Uttar Pradesh government, Kharge rued that Dalits in the country got their political freedom but they were still very far from gaining social freedom. He said that it was there for everyone to see how Dalits were being ill-treated in Uttar Pradesh.

Kharge also questioned how the Uttar Pradesh police can manhandle Congress leaders. "Our leaders Priyanka Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were going to Hathras in a most peaceful way. They were repeatedly saying that they would walk alone, but the police instead of listening to them indulged in manhandling. This is a clear case of power going to head," he charged.