RSS taught Modi that country develops through lectures, false promises: Rahul Gandhi
Shivamogga: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said the RSS has taught Modi that he should stress more on giving lectures. The RSS has taught him to stand, hold stick, wear knickers and speak lies. I think the prime minister is now realising that the nation cannot be run with hatred, lathi, speeches and false promises.
The Congress president was speaking at an election rally, during his fifth visit to Karnataka ahead of the state Assembly Elections on May 12.
Refferring to Shah’s gaffe at a press coference in Davangere, Rahul said, "First time the BJP spoke truth. Whatever they had in their mind they spoke it. Amit Shah said (at Davangere) that Yeddyurappa government was the most corrupt government. I am happy that he spoke truth for the first time in his life," he said.
Jay Sah
A combative Rahul further called out BJP National President Amit Shah for corruption. “Jay Shah, Amit Shah's son turned Rs 50,000 into Rs 80 crore in 3 months and Modi has not said a word. He has also taken the Rafale contract away from Karnataka's HAL and given it to his friend. He has given three times the money UPA government was giving. He has given friends 40,000 crores and Modi has still not spoken about this," he said.
He also attacked Modi on the CBSE question papers leak and on the "leak" of assembly election date for Karnataka, saying Modi was silent on these issues too.
Question paper leak
Lacing his remarks with sarcasm, Gandhi said the prime minister wrote a book (Exam Warriors) telling children how to face the exam and also gave a lecture for two hours on how to prepare for exams.
He said children took the advice seriously and prepared for the exam with the help of their parents but when they went to appear for the exam, they were told that the exams were cancelled as the question paper was leaked.
"Modi may have failed in plugging the question paper leak but he may again lecture children how to prepare for exams and will tell them about the dos and don'ts during exam," said Gandhi.
On one side, question papers are leaked, while on the other election dates are also leaked, Gandhi quipped.
Dalit atrocities
Rahul also questioned Prime Minister Modi for his silence on the alleged 'dilution' of the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act.
"Atrocities on Dalits and Adivasis has increased in the country. Modi has not uttered a word on the dilution of SC/ST Act. The amount of money Modi government gives Dalits and Adivasis in the country, the Congress party gives half of that money in one state alone in Karnataka," he said speaking at an election rally in Shivamogga.
His words came in the backdrop of violence in northern parts of the country during Monday's protests against the Supreme Court’s order on ‘misuse’ of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Rahul was accompanied by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee president G Parameshwara at the rally which followed a road show that commenced from Ashoka circle and passed through through Nehru Road and Amir Ahmed Circle before culminating at Gopi Circle.
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Air India, Air India Express to levy fuel surcharge on tickets; airfares to rise
New Delhi (PTI): Airfares are set to rise with Air India and Air India Express deciding to levy a fuel surcharge of Rs 399 on each domestic flight ticket from March 12 and also hike the charge for international bookings due to a steep rise in jet fuel prices amid the Middle East conflict.
The new fuel surcharges will be implemented in a phased manner.
Regretting the need for fuel surcharges, Air India on Tuesday said that without such surcharges, "it is likely that some flights would be unable to cover operating costs and would have to be cancelled".
In the first phase, a fuel surcharge of Rs 399 per domestic flight ticket would be imposed from March 12, and the same will also be applicable for SAARC flights, a statement said on Tuesday.
For West Asia flights, the fuel surcharge will be USD 10 and hiked by USD 30 to USD 90 for Africa flights and by USD 20 to USD 60 for Southeast Asia services.
All these changes will be effective from March 12, including for flights to and from Singapore. Currently, there is no fuel surcharge for Singapore services.
In the second phase, Air India will increase the fuel surcharge by USD 25 to USD 50 for flights to Europe, North America and Australia starting from March 18.
Fuel surcharge for Europe flights will rise to USD 125 from USD 100, and for North America flights, the same will increase from USD 150 to USD 200.
As per the statement, the fuel surcharge for Australia flights will increase from USD 150 to USD 200.
Currently, Air India Express does not levy fuel surcharges on any of its flights.
"Air India group today announced a phased expansion of a fuel surcharge on its domestic and international routes, necessitated by the steep rise in jet fuel prices arising from the geopolitical situation in the Gulf region," the statement said.
Since early March 2026, the statement that Aviation Turbine Fuel (ATF), which accounts for nearly 40 per cent of an airline's operating costs, has seen significant price escalation due to supply interruptions.
"In India, this pressure is amplified by high Excise Duty and VAT on ATF in major metro cities such as Delhi and Mumbai, magnifying the cost impact and placing substantial strain on airline operating economics," it said.
For the avoidance of doubt, the statement said that tickets that have already been issued prior to the above times will not attract the new surcharge unless customers seek date or itinerary changes that require a recalculation of the fare.
There was no announcement regarding fuel surcharges from IndiGo, SpiceJet and Akasa Air.
