No elections in future if PM Modi returns to power: Rajasthan Cong chief

Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra on Thursday targeted the Centre, saying "there will be no democracy and election in the future" if Prime Minister Narendra Modi comes back to power after the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

His comments echo what Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said at a meeting of party workers in Bhubaneswar on 29 January, urging people to stay away from the BJP and its ideologue RSS, alleging that they are "like poison".

Dotasra said the previous Congress government in Rajasthan had done better work than any other government in the states, but despite that, the party could not win the Assembly polls last year.

"If we do not act now, the way the country is moving, I can assure you that there will be no democracy and no elections in the future. In the coming time, like Pakistan, decisions will be taken in closed rooms (regarding) who will be the president, prime minister, minister and chief minister of a state," Dotasra said, addressing party workers in Dausa.

"There is no time for differences, we have to think about the country...“ in which direction is it going and what's going to happen? Is it again going toward slavery? The rule is of dictatorship, and nobody can speak. Democracy is under threat. The poor are getting poorer and a fistful of people are growing bigger," he said.

He also said the time has come to question the BJP-led Modi government at the Centre, regarding what they have done for jobs, doubling incomes, women empowerment, and improving economic policies as promised before the election.

Leader of the Opposition Tikaram Jully said the present situation across the country is known to all, everywhere the atmosphere is "tense", which will create such a situation that "the next generation will not forgive us in the future".

Jully alleged that public attention is being diverted. The BJP had promised two crore jobs annually, said it would bring back black money stashed away overseas, and double farmers' income, but nothing happened, he said.

"In 10 years of governance, the unemployment rate is the highest in the country, black money in foreign countries has increased, beef export has increased, and farmers are fighting on the road where the BJP promised to double their income," Jully said.

The two leaders are part of a two-day tour to hold dialogues with party workers and review preparations for the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra (BJNY) and the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections, Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee general secretary and spokesperson Swarnim Chaturvedi said earlier today.

Apart from Dotasra and Jully, the tour also features AICC in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa, all three of whom will visit Dausa, Bharatpur and Dholpur during the two-day programme and discuss five nyay or justice issues (youth, farmers, women, workers, participation) with Congress leaders and workers.