Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India]: Congress leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday launched a sharp attack on the Modi government over the recent 26% “reciprocal tariffs” imposed by the United States on Indian exports, warning that a “financial storm” is set to impact the country.
Speaking at the All India Congress Committee (AICC) session in Ahmedabad, Gandhi alleged that the government orchestrated the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in Parliament to distract from the economic implications of the tariff move.
“Did you see a photo of PM Narendra Modi and US President Donald J Trump hugging this time when the PM visited the US?… President Trump, whom PM Modi calls his friend, gave orders that this time they will not hug, this time, I will impose new tariffs. But PM Modi did not even utter a word. To divert the attention of the public, a drama was staged in the parliament for two days. The reality is that a financial storm is about to hit…crores of people will face loss. Unemployment is higher than in the last 50 years. Where is PM Modi?” Gandhi said.
The Congress leader also criticized the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, which was passed in the recent Budget Session and is now law, calling it “an attack on the freedom of religion and the Constitution.”
“The Waqf (Amendment) Bill is an attack on the freedom of religion and the Constitution,” he asserted.
Gandhi went on to accuse the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) of seeking to erode democratic institutions and centralize control.
“Their (RSS) ideology is against the Constitution. They want to end democracy. They want to control all the institutions of India and hand over the country’s money to Ambani Adani,” he claimed.
Citing a recent controversy involving former BJP MLA Gyandev Ahuja, who allegedly suggested a temple needed to be “purified” after a visit by Dalit leader and Rajasthan’s Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully, Gandhi denounced the incident as discriminatory.
“After Tika Ram Jully, our Dalit leader, went to a temple, BJP leaders got the temple cleaned once he left… This is not our religion,” he said.
Gandhi also reignited the call for a nationwide caste census and criticized the central government for refusing to conduct one.
“We took a revolutionary step of caste census in Telangana. A few months before that, I had asked PM Narendra Modi in the Parliament that we should get a caste census done in the country… I wanted to know who had what share in this country and whether this country truly respected the tribal, Dalit, and backward communities. PM Narendra Modi and RSS clearly refused the caste census because they don’t want to reveal the share that minorities get in this country… I told him that we will pass the caste census law in the Parliament right in front of you,” he declared.
The Congress party has increasingly pushed for a caste census as part of its broader plank of social justice and economic equity, with Rahul Gandhi taking the lead in advocating for transparency around representation and resource distribution among India’s marginalized communities.