'Come to Haryana, face our questions': CM Saini's counter to Rahul Gandhi over debate challenge

Saini launched a sharp attack on the Congress, accusing it of lacking substantive issues to raise before the public and attempting to mislead people by repeatedly alleging "vote theft". He said the party was casting doubts on the credibility of democracy and the Election Commission through its claims.

CHANDIGARH: Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Friday took a swipe at senior Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, over his debate challenge, inviting him to Haryana to face questions from the BJP Yuva Morcha president.

Offering to arrange the venue himself, Saini said Gandhi could not expect to make what he described as false allegations without facing questions in return. "It cannot be a one-sided affair where someone makes false claims and then walks away," he remarked.

Saini said that if the Congress had any grievances regarding the electoral process, it should present its case before the Chief Election Commissioner. He said the Election Commission was an independent institution and that the courts were also open to the party.

Questioning why the Congress was unwilling to approach these forums, he said merely making allegations from home for public consumption would serve no purpose.

Saini was speaking to the media after transferring funds under various government welfare schemes. He responded to questions on government initiatives, crop procurement, allegations levelled by the Congress and several other issues.

Launching a sharp attack on the Congress, Saini said the party had no substantive issue to take to the people and was therefore attempting to mislead the country in the name of "vote theft" while casting doubts on the credibility of democracy and the Election Commission.

He said that if the Congress had complaints about voters' names being deleted or incorrectly recorded, the Election Commission had already prescribed a procedure for raising objections. Electoral rolls had been made available in the public domain, and a month's time had been provided to file objections through the prescribed forms.

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Despite these provisions, he said, the Congress continued to mislead the public. People were watching these developments closely and would no longer be swayed by such claims.

"There has been no vote theft. What the Congress is facing today is the consequence of its own actions. People are now even saying that the Congress should shut down the party," he remarked.

Saini said that during Congress rule, elderly people often went without pensions for as long as six months and were forced to make repeated visits to government offices and political leaders to secure their dues. Many, he said, had to wait outside offices in the scorching sun, with no one willing to listen to their grievances.

He said Congress leaders were now raising allegations of vote theft but should first answer for the treatment meted out to the poor, elderly and needy during their tenure.

Under the earlier system, when benefits worth Rs 200 were meant for a poor person, only Rs 50 would reach the intended recipient, with no accountability for the remaining Rs 150, he said. Today, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the full amount of welfare benefits is being transferred directly into beneficiaries' bank accounts, he added.

Saini said the Congress had governed the country for decades and had been given opportunities by successive generations of voters. "People had hoped that the next generation of Congress leadership would bring change, but the situation remained the same," he remarked.

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He further said that the Congress lacked a concrete vision for national development even when it was in power and that its politics remained confined to allegations and counter-allegations. At times, its leaders staged protests wearing black clothes; at others, they sat on dharnas, and now they had begun turning to village chaupals, he said.

Taking a dig at the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress, Saini said women in Punjab had been promised Rs 1,000 per month during the elections. Over five years, this would amount to Rs 50,000 per woman. However, with elections approaching, there was now talk of depositing Rs 1,000 into women's accounts, he said.

Questioning why the promised amount had not been provided over the preceding five years, Saini said making promises to women to secure their votes and subsequently failing to fulfil them amounted to betrayal.

Referring to the Congress promise of providing 100-square-yard residential plots to poor families in Haryana, Saini said the party had made the announcement in the final days of the election campaign without providing either ownership documents or actual possession.

In contrast, he said, the present government had provided eligible beneficiaries with plot documents as well as possession. While the Congress had confined its politics to securing votes, his government was working to ensure that the poor received their rightful entitlements, he added.