'Political Career Launched 13 Times and Failed Every Time': Amit Shah's Veiled Swipe at Rahul Gandhi

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday launched a veiled attack at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in his address to the Lok Sabha while responding to the no-confidence motion.

“We have a leader in this House, who has been launched in politics 13 times. However, he has failed every time,” Shah said without naming the Congress leader.

Referring to one of the political career launches that he had witnessed, he spoke about an interaction between Gandhi and a woman named Kalavati.

“I have witnessed one of his launchings in which he visited a poor woman from Bundelkhand named Kalavati. But what did you do for her? A house, ration and electricity were provided to her by the Modi government,” he quipped.

Who is Kalavati Bandurkar?

Shah was referring to Kalavati Bandurkar, a Vidarbha farmer’s widow who landed on national spotlight after Rahul Gandhi visited her in 2008, amidst the agrarian crisis in Maharashtra’s Vidarbha. He had pegged his speech on her plight during the trust vote debate in Parliament against. Kalavati had expressed her intention to commit suicide due to her inability to meet basic needs. With seven daughters and two sons, she has said she was on the brink of starvation.

Amit Shah Slams Opposition

Shah in his speech launched a scathing attack against the Opposition alliance who he accused of indulging in “corruption”. “The character of political parties and alliances is revealed in such times of crises. UPA’s character is to indulge in corruption to save the government by hook or by crook, while the BJP-led NDA’s character is to stand up to the principles,” Shah said.

He remarked that during 1993, the then Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao had confronted a no-confidence motion, and the Congress had resorted to any means necessary to cling to power.

“Narasimha Rao won the trust vote, but Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) members had to go to jail. Later, Narasimha Rao also went to jail… today, the Congress and the JMM are sitting in the opposition in the Lok Sabha,” he said

During the 2008 confidence motion initiated by Manmohan Singh, the House became a witness to “its most disgraceful moments”, with MPs being tempted by crores of rupees, ultimately securing the government’s survival, Shah said.

Shah said that the no-confidence motion was brought in the House only to create distrust. “Narendra Modi has dismantled corruption, dynasty politics and appeasement and gave importance to politics of performance,” he said.

This, according to the BJP leader, illustrates the “character of the UPA.” Shah said “UPA’s character is to indulge in corruption to save their government,” and stated that while opposition parties might lack trust in the government, the nation’s citizens have full faith in the Modi government.

“Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the most trusted PM since India’s Independence,” he said.