I erase hatred, fear, I'm Congress: Rahul hits back at BJP
New Delhi, July 17 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday hit back at the BJP over alleged "Congress is for Muslims" remarks, spelling out in a tweet the philosophy of the party that "stands with the last person in the line" whose religion or caste doesn't matter.
In a widely shared and liked tweet, Gandhi said: "I stand with the last person in the line. The exploited, marginalised and the persecuted. Their religion, caste or beliefs matter little to me.
"I seek out those in pain and embrace them. I erase hatred and fear. I love all living beings. I am the Congress."
The tweet, not directed at any individual or a party, apparently came in response to BJP's unabated criticism over his reported remark that the Congress was a party of Muslims.
The BJP has been latching on to these remarks Gandhi reportedly made during a meeting with Muslim intellectuals. The ruling party said Gandhi and his party were indulging in communal politics ahead of the 2019 elections.
The alleged remarks were reported by an Urdu daily even as one some participants in the meeting denied Gandhi made such controversial reference.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Prime Minister Narendra Modi both targeted the Congress President over the issue.
"I read in the newspapers that (the) naamdaar (referring to Gandhi) said the Congress is a party of the Muslims. I am not surprised... When the previous Prime Minister (Manmohan Singh) was in charge, he said openly that the first use of natural resources should be with Muslims," Modi said at a public meeting in Azamgarh of Uttar Pradesh on Saturday.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Section of TN hotels declare holiday citing shortage of LPG cylinders
Chennai, Mar 11 (PTI): A section of hotels and restaurants operating in Chennai and parts of Tamil Nadu on Wednesday declared a holiday following the lack of commercial LPG supply to the establishments, employees said.
Early morning customers who had come for tea and coffee expressed disappointment over the closure of the hotels and expressed hope that the Centre would take up measures to ease the situation.
"Due to lack of LPG supply, March 11, 2026 has been declared a holiday," a notice displayed in a popular hotel in the city said on Wednesday.
"If this is the case for commercial LPG, then it may impact the domestic LPG supply also. Already, the booking period for domestic gas has been extended from the existing 21 days to 25 days. We do not know what we will do," a resident who had come for a coffee said, after the hotel in Thiyagaraya Nagar declared a holiday.
ALSO: Trump says Reliance to invest in new Texas oil refinery
On March 10, the hotel association had voiced concern over sustaining their businesses as the existing stock of commercial LPG "would be sufficient to run the outlet only for one or two days".
Most of the restaurants have also cut the number of food items offered to customers and opted to prepare foods that require minimal usage of the commercial LPG cylinders.
"We have prepared idli, sambhar and vada. We have removed dosa varieties. In the afternoon and dinner, the menu will be variety rices only, since dosa and fried rice items require a continuous supply of LPG," a hotel owner in the famous East Coast Road said.
Representatives of Tamil Nadu Hotels Associations, a body representing the hotels and restaurants in the state, called on Chief Minister M K Stalin on March 10 and apprised him about the situation.
Following his interaction with the representatives, Stalin said he had requested the Union government to ensure that the shortage of commercial LPG does not affect the public, commercial establishments or MSMEs.
