Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi have ripped into Prime Minister Narendra Modi in tandem, portraying him as “helpless before the paper leak racket and education mafia” and providing a foretaste of the Opposition’s likely pugnacity in the new Lok Sabha when it opens on Monday.
Both Gandhi siblings spoke of the precarious “future” of the youth on Modi’s watch, seizing on the widespread anger among students, already battered by a job crisis, at the series of exam fiascos that has rocked the Prime Minister’s fledgling third government.
“Now NEET PG is also postponed!” Rahul posted on X late on Saturday night. “This is another unfortunate example of the ruined education system under the rule of Narendra Modi.”
In a long post in Hindi, Rahul added: “Under BJP rule, students are forced not to ‘study’ to build their career but to ‘fight’ the government to save their future.”
Rahul questioned Modi’s continued silence on the exam controversies and went on to project him as “helpless” in what appeared a carefully chosen jab at a time the poll results have undermined Modi’s aura of herculean strength.
“Now it is clear — Modi, who used to silently watch the spectacle every time, is completely helpless before the paper leak racket and education mafia,” Rahul wrote.
“Narendra Modi’s incompetent government is the biggest threat to the future of students — we must save the future of the country from it.”
Priyanka joined in the attack on Sunday morning, giving a peek into how she might act as a force multiplier for her brother when — as is likely — she joins him in Parliament. She is set to make her electoral debut by contesting the by-election from Wayanad, a seat vacated by Rahul.
In her post on X, she cited the paper leak allegations around the NEET-UG and the UGC-NET, and the cancellations of the NEET-PG, UGC-NET and CSIR-NET.
“This is the condition of some of the biggest examinations in the country today. Under the BJP’s rule, the entire education system has been handed over to the mafia and the corrupt,” she wrote in a Hindi post that matched Rahul’s for length.
Priyanka said the future of the youth had been handed over to “greedy and sycophantic incompetent people” because of the “political stubbornness and arrogance” of the BJP government.
“Today, the BJP government has become the single biggest hurdle in front of the future of the youth. The capable youth of the country are wasting their precious time and energy in fighting the corruption of the BJP and the helpless Modiji is just watching the spectacle,” Priyanka concluded.
Hooch hitback
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday seized on the hooch tragedy in Opposition-ruled Tamil Nadu to slam the Congress and demand a CBI probe, indicating the BJP’s intent to use the state-level controversy to deflect the Opposition’s attack on the exam fiascos.
“More than 200 people are still in hospital in a critical stage. Fifty-six people have died and most of them are from the Scheduled Caste(s).... I condemn the incident. I am shocked that the Congress has not uttered a word against this,” Sitharaman told news agency ANI.
“Where is Congress party president Mallikarjun Kharge?... Where is Rahul Gandhi?... He contests elections just because he is assured that he will win.... When Dalits are dying because of spurious liquor, not a statement comes from Rahul Gandhi.... I demand that this whole matter be given to the CBI for investigation.”
