Punjab, UP & Goa polls big challenge for Congress: Digvijaya

Image
Press Trust of India Panaji
Last Updated : Sep 24 2016 | 7:28 PM IST
The assembly election in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Goa next year is "big challenge" for the Congress and fighting these elections is like waging a war against BJP and APP, senior party leader Digvijaya Singh today.
"We have to enthuse the workers. We have to pump them up, we have to fight. The demoralised party cannot fight election. A demoralised army cannot fight wars. This is a war for us. The elections of Goa, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh are big challenges before Congress and we have to unitedly fight the BJP and AAP," Singh told party workers here today.
Accusing AAP of contesting in all these states to give support to BJP, Singh said, "(Union Minister) Nitin Gadkari himself has admitted that AAP will eat into the Congress votes. We have been saying this right from the beginning. If there is any gathbandhan (alliance) in this country, it is between BJP and AAP."
"They (AAP and BJP) are two faces of the same coin. They are together and each of them is helping the other. (Delhi Chief Minister) Arvind Kejriwal is a creature of Vivekananda International Foundation, which is a think tank of BJP and RSS. And he is only targeting Congress," he said.
Kejriwal is a part of 'Congress-mukt Bharat' campaign of BJP-RSS combine, Singh alleged.
According to him, Congress party represents all communities, castes, religions, but BJP only talks of Hindutva.
"Hindutva has nothing to do with Hindu religion, they want a Hindu nation, which means just as Pakistan is an Islamic nation, they want India to be a Hindu nation, which is not possible and which is against the constitution," Singh said.
"They (BJP) talk of Babasaheb Ambedkar's Constitution, but don't believe in it because the very fundamental issue of the Indian Constitution is that every person has a right to follow the religion of his choice. Therefore, no one can be forced to follow some other religion. There can't be forced conversion that one should understand," Singh said.
He said next month, Congress will organise a conference of SC, ST and OBC communities, businessmen and farmers in Goa. "All block Congress committees should also hold workers' convention," he said.

Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content

*Subscribe to Business Standard digital and get complimentary access to The New York Times

Smart Quarterly

₹900

3 Months

₹300/Month

SAVE 25%

Smart Essential

₹2,700

1 Year

₹225/Month

SAVE 46%
*Complimentary New York Times access for the 2nd year will be given after 12 months

Super Saver

₹3,900

2 Years

₹162/Month

Subscribe

Renews automatically, cancel anytime

Here’s what’s included in our digital subscription plans

Exclusive premium stories online

  • Over 30 premium stories daily, handpicked by our editors

Complimentary Access to The New York Times

  • News, Games, Cooking, Audio, Wirecutter & The Athletic

Business Standard Epaper

  • Digital replica of our daily newspaper — with options to read, save, and share

Curated Newsletters

  • Insights on markets, finance, politics, tech, and more delivered to your inbox

Market Analysis & Investment Insights

  • In-depth market analysis & insights with access to The Smart Investor

Archives

  • Repository of articles and publications dating back to 1997

Ad-free Reading

  • Uninterrupted reading experience with no advertisements

Seamless Access Across All Devices

  • Access Business Standard across devices — mobile, tablet, or PC, via web or app

More From This Section

First Published: Sep 24 2016 | 7:28 PM IST

Next Story