Voice not being heard: Churu MP Rahul Kaswan joins Congress after quitting BJP
Jaipur/New Delhi, Mar 11: Churu MP Rahul Kaswan on Monday resigned from the BJP and joined the Congress in the presence of party chief Mallikarjun Kharge in Delhi.
After joining the Congress, Kaswan -- who was denied a ticket by the BJP to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, said he felt his "voice was not being heard" in the saffron party.
Kaswan's name was cleared by the Congress' central election committee as candidate from the Churu Lok Sabha constituency, sources said.
Kaswan is the second BJP MP in as many days to join the Congress. Brijendra Singh, the BJP's MP from Hisar, joined the party on Saturday.
Welcoming Kaswan into the Congress fold, Kharge said the party needs such people who have fought against power.
"I heartily welcome Rahul Kaswan ji on joining the Congress. I am happy that Rahul Kaswan ji, who fought against feudal people and have supported the farmers' issue, has joined the Congress," Kharge said.
"If people with such ideology keep joining the Congress, then the BJP will certainly be decimated. The BJP has always been intimidating people but we need people like Rahul Kaswan ji," he added.
The Congress chief also referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speeches in different languages across the country and said he wants to have a "mastery" on everything but continues his habit of intimidating people.
Speaking to reporters after joining the Congress, Kaswan said, "My entire family was working with honesty and dedication in the region but a time came when I felt that my voice was not being heard (in the BJP)."
"I felt that I will suffocate if I cannot raise the issues of my farmer brothers," he added.
Welcoming Kaswan, the Congress' Rajasthan unit chief Govind Singh Dotasra said he took membership of the party in Delhi in the presence of Kharge.
"Undoubtedly Rahul Kaswan ji's spirit of farmer welfare and public service will lend strength to public issues and strengthen the party organisation," Dotasra said.
Earlier, announcing his decision to resign from the BJP and his Lok Sabha membership, Kaswan expressed gratitude to Modi and party leaders for giving him the opportunity to represent Churu twice as its MP.
"Due to political reasons, at this very moment today, I am resigning from the primary membership of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and from the post of Member of Parliament," Kaswan said in a post on X.
"I express my gratitude to BJP National President JP Nadda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah, who gave me the opportunity to serve the Churu Lok Sabha family for 10 years, " he said.
The BJP has fielded Paralympic Games gold medallist Devendra Jhajharia from Churu.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh, its Rajasthan in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, and Leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly Tika Ram Jully were also present as Kaswan joined the party.
Kaswan's family is counted among the prominent political families of Rajasthan. He won the Churu Lok Sabha seat for two consecutive terms. His father Ram Singh Kaswan was a four-time MP and mother Kamla Kaswan was an MLA. His grandfather Deepchand Kaswan was a minister.
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Conspiracy afoot to 'tarnish' image of Dharmasthala: Deputy CM DK Shivakumar
Bengaluru, Aug 14 (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said there was a “conspiracy” to tarnish the image of Dharmasthala.
His comments come amid an ongoing investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into serious allegations of mass burials in the revered temple town in Dakshina Kannada district.
“A conspiracy is being hatched to destroy hundreds of years of legacy. It is not correct to tarnish someone just like that. It has all happened due to one complainant,” he said.
Noting that some Congress MLAs have called for action against those involved in the slander campaign at the legislature party meeting, he said, “ I have told them that action must be taken against those who are indulging in a slander campaign. The CM has also said that action must be taken against such people.”
“I have information on this case. Religious feelings should not be hurt in any manner. Culprits must be punished,” he told reporters, according to a release from his office.
Responding to a question, Shivakumar said the Congress party will not allow the image of any religious place to be tarnished.
“We see everyone equally when it comes to religion,” he added.
The SIT, formed by the state government, is probing claims of mass murder, rape, and mass burials in Dharmasthala over the past two decades.
The complainant, a former sanitation worker whose identity has not been revealed, alleged that between 1995 and 2014 he was forced to handle bodies—including women and minors—and that some showed signs of sexual assault. He has given a statement before a magistrate.
As part of the probe, the SIT has been conducting exhumations at multiple locations identified by the complainant-witness in the forested areas along the banks of the Netravathi River in Dharmasthala, where some skeletal remains have been found at two sites so far.
