BJP marks 3 yrs in office with 'Jana Spandana' event, Irani lashes out at Rahul over his unity yatra

Bengaluru: The ruling BJP in Karnataka on Saturday celebrated its three years in office, putting out a major show of strength attended by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and Union Minister Smriti Irani among others, with over 2 lakh people said to have participated in the event.

The 'Jana Spandana' (public response) campaign, held in the Rural Bengaluru district also marked Bommai's one year at the helm, and came after suffering three earlier postponements, one of them in the backdrop of the outrage over the killing of a Hindu activist in July.

According to Bommai, two lakh people from various parts of the state attended the party's grand event, held ahead of next year's assembly elections in the southern state.

Irani, Union Minister for Woman and Child Welfare, in her address targeted Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra', asking him who has harmed the unity of the country that required the opposition party to take out such a campaign, covering about 3,500 km from Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu to Kashmir.

Making an indirect reference to Congress leader Kanhaiya Kumar, she took a dig at Gandhi for being in the company of people who allegedly chanted "anti-India" slogans.

"Rahul Gandhi is on the way to unite India but he should answer first who dared to break India. You make a person a member of your party who had shouted the slogan Bharat Tere Tukde Honge, Insha Allah," Irani said at the event held in Doddaballapura.

She expressed shock over Gandhi's remark in Kanyakumari in Tamil Nadu that the fight is now against the structure of Indian state.

Irani, who represents Amethi Lok Sabha constituency in Uttar Pradesh, said: "With all seriousness, I am making this charge of sedition." "I am shocked at Rahul Gandhi's statement that he is fighting against the Indian state. You have waged a war against India. I am shocked by your hunger for power," she lashed out.

Gandhi had earlier said during his 'Bharat jodo yatra' that "you know the role of the CBI, of the ED, of the Income Tax department. So, we are not fighting anymore a political party, we used to fight a political party. Now, the fight is not between one political party and another political party. Now, the fight is between the structure of the Indian state and the opposition and everybody understands this." Irani further charged that during the Congress rule in Maharashtra a terrorist's grave was beautified with marble tiles in Mumbai and that the attacker was responsible for the killing of around 250 people.

She also alleged that when the Centre under Prime Minister Narendra Modi was fighting against the covid-19 pandemic and succeeded in developing an indigenous vaccine, the Congress was spreading lies asking people not to use it.

She slammed the 'sycophants of Gandhi family' for allegedly using derogatory remarks against President Droupadi Murmu, the first tribal person to hold the highest post in India.

The Union minister charged the Congress could not "digest" the statue of iconic freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose being inaugurated at 'Kartavya Path' in New Delhi on Thursday as the party did not issue any statement favouring the step. Besides chief minister Bommai, BJP strongman B S Yediyurappa, party's state president Nalin Kumar Kateel, ministers in the government including Health Minister K Sudhakar among others attended the event.

A BJP activist said 5,000 buses were arranged to ferry the party workers, supporters and well-wishers. Large number of people thronged the venue.

Elaborate security arrangements were made to avert any untoward incident. Many cooks were toiling since early morning to feed the massive crowd.