Telangana Congress president B Mahesh Kumar Goud on Saturday challenged the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to contest elections without invoking religion or god, accusing the saffron party of exploiting faith for political gain. He also alleged that the BJP was using Jana Sena president and Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan to revive its fortunes in Telangana, but asserted that the Congress would return to power and the BJP would be decimated in the state.
Protest against rejection of Meenakshi Natarajan's nomination
Goud was speaking at a satyagraha deeksha at Gandhi Bhavan, organized by the Rajiv Gandhi Panchayat Raj Sangathan, to protest against the rejection of AICC leader Meenakshi Natarajan's Rajya Sabha nomination papers in Madhya Pradesh. He alleged that the BJP, with the purported support of the Election Commission authorities, had turned the process into an exercise to remove secular votes.
“The BJP is undermining democratic institutions and constitutional values. Meenakshi’s nomination was rejected based on a private complaint in a court. There was not even an FIR. There have been instances in other states where candidates were given opportunity to rectify deficiencies in nomination papers,” Goud claimed.
Congress committed to democratic values
While the BJP spreads false allegations against the Nehru-Gandhi family, the Congress remains firmly committed to protecting democratic values, Goud added. He expressed confidence that the Congress would emerge victorious in Telangana, dismissing any threat from the BJP or its allies.
