Bharat Mata voice of every Indian, will do everything to amplify voice of Ladakh: Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said Bharat Mata is the voice of every Indian and asserted that he will do everything he can to amplify the voice of Ladakh, as he shared a video of his recent visit to the Union territory on a motorcycle.
Sharing the video on X, Rahul Gandhi said his father Rajiv Gandhi had once told him that Pangong Tso Lake was one of the most beautiful places on Earth.
"Since then, I have always yearned to go to Ladakh, and as I continued on my Bharat Jodo Yatra, I thought, what better way to visit Ladakh than on a motorcycle!" Gandhi said.
A journey has all kinds of discoveries, and the most incredible one was the love and humility of the Ladakhi people, the former Congress chief said in his post in Hindi.
Their empathy and wisdom about Ladakh is unmatched and any plan for the future development of the region must be based on their input, he asserted.
"Ladakh is one of India's crown jewels and one of the world's most important strategic locations. It broke my heart to see a sense of betrayal in the eyes of the people. They felt betrayed by the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) when he lied about the Chinese occupation of our land," Gandhi said.
They felt betrayed by the BJP government when it failed to fulfil any of its promises, he said.
"A government must empower all of its people and Ladakh needs good governance. Bharat Mata is the voice of each and every Indian and I will do everything I can to amplify the voice of Ladakh," Rahul Gandhi said.
Sharing the video, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said that on January 24, during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, Rahul Gandhi had met a delegation from Ladakh in Kotli Jhajjar and it included people who wanted him to come to Ladakh.
"He fulfilled his promise last month. Taking forward the Bharat Jodo Yatra, he went to Ladakh," he said.
The video shows Rahul Gandhi with a group of biking enthusiasts who travelled with him to Pangong Tso Lake and other areas of Ladakh on motorcycles, often through rough and rocky terrain. It also shows Gandhi interacting with various groups around Ladakh and getting to know their demands.
"I spoke with the people, mothers, sisters and youth, and tried to understand what is in your heart. One thing is clear the ideology of Gandhi and the Congress is in the blood and DNA of Ladakh. I would like to tell you that in the next Parliament session, I will raise your main issues," he is heard saying to the people of Ladakh in the video.
Gandhi along with scores of people from the Congress had undertaken a nearly 4,000-km Kanyakumari-to-Kashmir journey from September last year to January.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
