Rahul Gandhi calls Modi 'loudspeaker' of rich businessmen
Nuh (Haryana): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday of being a "loudspeaker for Adani and Ambani" and alleged that he only talked about big businessmen and had taken out money from the pockets of the poor to give away to his "rich friends".
Addressing his first rally here for the October 21 Haryana Assembly polls, Gandhi also attacked Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, alleging that both he and Modi did not talk about the poor and only thought about the welfare of "rich" businessmen.
He also hit out at the media, saying, "They will show the worshipping of the Rafale (fighter jet), but would not talk about the theft in it."
"Narendra Modi is the loudspeaker of Ambani and Adani as he only talks about them all day. "Modi and Khattar are taking away your money and giving it to their 15 rich friends," Gandhi alleged.
"You call yourselves nationalists, why are you giving away India's capital to your rich friends? Why are they selling PSUs to their rich friends?," he asked.
"Modi's work is to divert your attention from the real issues, so you do not ask any questions of them," he said. Accusing Modi of waiving Rs 5.50 lakh crore of 15 rich businessmen, Gandhi alleged that the media did not highlight the real issues.
"There is so much unemployment and they talk of Bollywood, the moon. They will show the worshipping of the Rafale (fighter jet) but will not talk about the theft in it.... There is shooting in Jim Corbett (National Park) but Modi will not say anything about what farmers want," he said, training his guns on the media.
Gandhi also targeted the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), accusing them of dividing the country and its people on the basis of caste, religion and region like the British, and said the Congress united people.
"The Congress is the party for everyone and our job is to unite people, while the BJP-RSS, like the British, divide the country and its people and make them fight each other. Wherever they go, they make people fight on the basis of caste, religion, region," he said.
Gandhi also accused the prime minister of taking poor people's money and giving it to rich businessmen.
Hitting out at Modi and Khattar, he said, "When you listen to Modiji and Khattarji's speeches these days, you get to hear false promises one after another."
While the prime minister talked about his "mann ki baat", he would instead talk of "kaam Ki baat", the Congress leader said as he sought public support for his party to regain power in Haryana.
The Congress is seeking to oust the BJP government in Haryana in the October 21 polls.
Gandhi claimed that whatever promises he had made so far, he had fulfilled like those in Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, besides Karnataka.
"Whatever we say from the stage, we do that. I promise that the Gurgaon-Alwar railway line will be a reality, the Nuh engineering college will be made a university. The expansion of the local lake and the Mewat canal will be done once a Congress government is formed in Haryana," he said.
Lamenting that the country's economy was shattered under the Modi government, Gandhi said to jump-start the economy, money was needed to be put in the pockets of the poor and farmers and the Congress's "Nyay" scheme, proposed during the Lok Sabha polls held in April-May, was a step in this direction.
"You will see Modi only with (US President Donald) Trump and (industrialist) Ambani, but you will never see him with farmers," he said.
Gandhi warned of a serious economic situation in the country in the coming days as Modi, he alleged, was giving away all the money taken from the poor to rich businessmen, who were fleeing abroad with it.
"The economy is destroyed. You ask the small and medium traders and they will say that they have been destroyed," he said, adding that the Goods and Services Tax (GST), which he dubbed as the "Gabbar Singh Tax", had demolished businesses.
Gandhi said post demonetisation, it was only the poor who were standing in the queues in front of banks, while big businessmen like the Ambanis were not.
"Crores of money were taken out from your pockets and put in the pockets of Adani and Ambani," he said.
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Zubeen Garg's drowning in Singapore highlights vessel operators' responsibility: legal experts
Singapore (PTI): The drowning of Indian singer-composer Zubeen Garg has brought the spotlight on rules and regulations that concern responsibilities of vessel operators when dealing with intoxicated passengers, according to a media report that cited legal experts.
A cultural icon in India’s northeastern region, 52-year-old Garg travelled to Singapore in September 2025 to perform at a live event. A day before his performance, he went on a yacht trip with a group of people. He drowned while swimming in the sea near Lazarus Island, which is a popular diving spot.
His death shook his home state Assam, where millions came out on the streets mourning. Later, police cases were registered against the organiser of the event, his manager and some others.
Nico Lee, managing director of the Triangle Legal law firm, told The Straits Times that Singapore has Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (Port) Regulations under which there are provisions to debar drunk passengers.
The owner, agent or captain of the vessel must not allow persons under the influence of alcohol or drugs onboard if they are intoxicated to a point where they endanger safety of the vessel, its crew or any person in it.
“In terms of civil liability, it could be argued that a yacht captain is negligent, as he owes a prima facie duty of care to guests on board under general negligence principles,” Lee was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
The singer and his entourage of about 15 individuals were partying on a chartered vessel, which they had boarded at Marina at Keppel Bay.
A death certificate issued by the Singapore General Hospital listed his cause of death as drowning.
An autopsy report suggested that Garg had 333 mg of alcohol per 100 ml of blood in his system, which was four times the legal limit for driving in Singapore and is likely to have impacted his coordination.
Citing Garg’s case, Lee said the circumstances were serious, as the controller of the vessel knew that the guest was intoxicated. Also, he may not have understood or processed a safety briefing for all passengers.
“That combination makes reliance on an ordinary briefing inadequate. If intoxication reaches a level that endangers the safety of the vessel or persons on board, the person in charge should not permit boarding at all,” he said.
According to Lee, the vessel’s operators could also have assigned a crew member to directly supervise him or ensure that he received a one-to-one explanation when he was capable of understanding.
Part of the responsibility could be attributed to the guest if he chose to enter the water and ignore instructions or behave dangerously despite the yacht owner or charterer’s best efforts, Lee said.
Vanessa Sandhu from Clifford Law LLP told The Straits Times that a key question is whether the yacht captain or operator owed a “duty of care” to the passenger and, if so, whether a breach of that duty caused the death.
“A yacht captain and operator generally owe passengers a duty to take reasonable care for their safety while on board, including swimming or water activities. This may include providing safety equipment and issuing appropriate safety instructions,” the daily quoted Sandhu as saying.
“However, the standard of care is an objective one, based on what a reasonable captain or operator would have done in the circumstances. It is not an absolute obligation to prevent all harm,” she said.
During the coroner’s inquiry, the operators of the vessel had said that no one had forced the singer to consume alcohol or enter the water, and that the entire entourage was informed on the yacht about the necessity of wearing life jackets before going for a swim.
A coroner’s inquiry on March 25 ruled Garg’s death as accidental drowning. On April 1, the police said that investigations into the singer's death had concluded, with no evidence of foul play.
However, in Assam, where seven persons were arrested in connection with Garg’s case, and some of them charged with murder, the matter is being heard in the court. All the suspects have denied any wrongdoing.
