Have received thousands of letters from people offering me houses, says Rahul Gandhi
Vijayapura, Apr 23: A day after vacating his official bungalow in New Delhi following the Lok Sabha disqualification, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday took a swipe at the ruling BJP saying it has done a good thing by taking back the house, as he has received thousands of letters from people inviting him to theirs.
The former AICC President said his house is in the hearts of the people and that he doesn't want any home.
Asserting that Congress is against BJP and RSS' ideology which "believes in spreading hate and violence", he said his party will fight it without any fear, and ensure its defeat.
"BJP has put several cases on me, they have removed me from the Parliament, they have taken away my house, but thousands of people wrote letters to me saying Rahul ji- come to our house. My house is in your (people's) hearts. I don't want any house. They have done good by taking the house," Gandhi said.
Stating that in the case he has been accused of using wrong words against OBCs, he said, "first of all I don't use wrong words against anyone. I respect every citizen of Hindustan. As I say, (I have) opened the shop of love in the market of hate."
Gandhi vacated his official bungalow in Lutyens' Delhi on Saturday and shifted to his mother Sonia Gandhi's residence, weeks after losing his Lok Sabha membership following his conviction in a defamation case.
Last month, he was sentenced to two years in jail by a court in Gujarat's Surat in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his "why all thieves have the Modi surname" remark. A day later, he was disqualified as a member of the Lok Sabha.
Gandhi was addressing a public meeting here after holding a massive road show, ahead of the May 10 Assembly polls in Karnataka.
Invoking 12th century social reformer Basavanna on his birth anniversary, Gandhi claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and ruling BJP leaders only spoke about the Lingayat philosopher in their speeches but didn't follow his teachings.
Calling the BJP government in Karnataka the "most corrupt in the country", he said Congress would win 150 seats out of the total 224 in the polls in the state, while the "40 per cent BJP government" would get only 40 seats.
"Basavanna had said don't fear, speak out truth. If we see today, there is BJP and RSS' ideology which is creating an atmosphere of hatred and violence in the country. Prime Minister and BJP leaders speak about Basavanna, but don't follow his teachings," Gandhi said.
He said Basavanna had spoken about helping the weaker sections of society, he did not say "help the billionaires".
"I have read about Basavanna's teachings. He has nowhere written that get the country's wealth to Adani. I spoke in Parliament, I asked the Prime Minister as to what was his relationship with Adani. The country's entire wealth, ports and airports are being given to Adani; what's your relationship," he said.
Claiming that his microphone was first switched off in the Lok Sabha for asking those questions, Gandhi said his speech was then removed from the House records, and at the end he himself was removed from the Lok Sabha.
"They think that the truth can only be spoken in Lok Sabha, but it can be spoken anywhere, even here," he said.
AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal, Karnataka Congress campaign committee chief M B Patil and KPCC working president Satish Jarkiholi, were among those present.
Earlier on Sunday, Gandhi began his two-day visit to the poll-bound southern state from Kudala Sangama, where he offered obeisance to Basaveshwara, also known as Basavanna, on his birth anniversary which is celebrated as Basava Jayanti. Basavanna is the founder of the Lingayat sect.
This visit of Gandhi is seen as an attempt by the Congress to bolster the Lingayat outreach ahead of the polls in an attempt to woo the dominant community. Lingayats constitute about 17 per cent of the State's population and are largely seen as the ruling BJP's vote base.
Highlighting Congress' 'guarantees', including 200 units of free power to all households and Rs 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family if voted to power, Gandhi said they are based on Basavanna's thinking.
"I have read Basavanna's thoughts, I searched whether there is any reference to 40 per cent commission, to find whether there is any reference to looting the people, but didn't find it anywhere. The BJP government in Karnataka is the most corrupt in the country, they take 40 percent commission in whatever they do," he claimed, as he hit out at PM Modi for his "inaction against corruption charges against his party leaders and government".
He said while the PM claims he was against corruption, he, however, does not look towards his left and right. Gandhi asked Modi to please look at "who is standing next to you--they are the ones who took 40 per cent commission, using the same money they ensured that the MLAs defected which led to the fall of the coalition government" in 2019.
Reminding people that they had not elected the BJP government to power, he alleged, "this is the government of thieveries, this is 40 per cent commission government, they had formed the government after stealing the MLAs."
"Prime Minister please tell the people, as to from where the money came to buy the MLAs. MLAs were brought in Goa, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and North East, from where did the money come? The money looted from people through corruption is used to buy MLAs."
When Congress comes to power, they will not be able to buy MLAs, as it will get 150 seats, and the BJP which is used to the habit of 40 per cent commission will get only 40 seats, he added.
Gandhi also urged the Prime Minister to make the UPA government initiated caste census data public, and asked why it was not being released.
"It is because you (Modi) don't want to share India's money among OBCs...if you don't do it we will first put pressure on you, then we will do it (after coming to power)," he said.
Gandhi also demanded to provide reservation based on population, and removal of 50 per cent cap on reservation.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
