Jairam Ramesh hits back at Rajnath Singh, quotes Pranab Mukherjee

Jairam Ramesh hit back at Rajnath Singh, quoting Pranab Mukherjee's take on the opposition's role to 'oppose, expose, depose'. This came after Singh accused Congress of using youth protests against the EC to incite political unrest.

Senior Congress leader and MP Jairam Ramesh on Friday hit back at Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, invoking former President Pranab Mukherjee stance on the Opposition's role in a democracy, which he said was "to oppose, expose and depose." Ramesh noted that Mukherjee, a Congress veteran, was awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2019. His remarks came in response to Singh's allegation that the Congress and its allies were using youth-led protests against the Election Commission to fuel political unrest. "The Defence Minister needs to be reminded of what the former President Pranab Mukherjee, who was awarded the Bharat Ratna in 2019, would often say: the job of the Opposition in a democracy is to oppose, expose and depose," Ramesh said on X.

Rajnath Singh alleges Opposition fueling political unrest

This comes amid continued protests by opposition leaders, INDIA bloc parties and student organisations against the Election Commission's SIR. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said the Congress and its allies were using youth-led protests against the Election Commission to fuel political unrest, alleging that they were seeking regime change in India along the lines of Bangladesh.

He added that the opposition was attempting to destabilise the country by turning youth into “pawns in the politics of disorder”. “The developments that have taken place in Delhi over the past few days raise several serious questions. It appears that the Congress and its political allies, both directly and through their affiliated organisations, are attempting to channel the energy of young people not into constructive activities and nation-building, but into instruments of political confrontation and the spread of chaos.”

He said, "Attempts are being made to use the nation's youth as pawns in a politics of chaos. Some seek a regime change—modelled after the events in Bangladesh—openly admitting that they drew inspiration from the situation in Bangladesh; others, meanwhile, brazenly call for the toppling of the government. This makes it clear that their sole agenda is to dismantle democratic institutions and set the country ablaze...their struggle is not for electoral reform, nor is it about SIR or Gyanesh Kumar; it is not for the sake of a bright future for the nation's youth—rather, it is a conspiracy to seize power by inciting anarchy in the country," he said.

He said that the INDIA bloc was using protests over electoral reforms and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar as a pretext to create unrest and seize power.

"India's constitutional bodies cannot be made sacrificial for political interests. This needs to be understood. Through false outrage, attempts to malign institutions and political opportunism, India's development journey cannot be affected. Instead of indulging in politics of disruption, Rahul Gandhi should respect the public mandate and do self-introspection of his political role."

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