New Delhi, Jan 15 (Agency) Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused the BJP-RSS of “capturing the institutions of the country” including the Election Commission and said the “Congress was not just fighting a political oganisation but Indian state itself”. Addressing party workers after the inauguration of the new AICC headquarters –Indira Bhawan – at Kotla Road here, Gandhi also accused the Election Commission of lacking transparency. The former Congress President said, “Do not think we are fighting a fair fight. If you believe we are fighting against a political organisation called BJP and RSS, they have captured almost every institution in our country. We are now fighting not just the BJP and RSS, but the Indian state itself”. Claiming that something wrong had happened in the Maharashtra elections, Rahul said, “We are uncomfortable with the way the Election Commission is holding elections. The sudden appearance of almost one crore new voters between the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections in Maharashtra is problematic”. He said that the duty of the Election Commission was to provide the voters’ list with names and addresses of those who voted in the Vidhan Sabha election, but Rahul claimed that the “Election Commission has refused to provide this information”. “Why would the Election Commission refuse to make the voters’ list transparent? What purpose does it serve by not providing us with the list, and why are they withholding it?
It is the Election Commission’s duty to provide transparency, and it is their sacred responsibility to explain why this has happened,” the Lok Sabha MP from Raebareli asked. He said that everyone from the Congress and the Opposition must understand that there was a serious problem in the country’s election system and it was the duty of the Election Commission to be transparent.Further alleging that the Government was using investigating agencies against the Opposition, Gandhi said, “We do not know whether our institutions are working or non-functional”. He also criticised the media by claiming it to be “not fair”. The Lok Sabha MP praised his party workers for sincerely working for the Congress.The former Congress President said the in the new building one will see how deeply the party has impacted the soul of India. He said, “For Congress members, it’s essential to know who we are, what our tradition is, what our history is, and where we come from”.