Gujarat 'sinking' amid rising drugs, illegal liquor menace: Rahul Gandhi

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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday flagged the issues of "rising menace of drugs and illegal liquor" and the plight of farmers in Gujarat, and claimed that the state is "sinking" despite a double-engine government being in place.

The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said that during the Congress party's ongoing 'Jan Aakrosh Yatra' in Gujarat, people, especially women, have repeatedly stated that the "rising menace of drugs, illegal liquor, and crime" has deepened the sense of insecurity in their lives.

"Gujarat is the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel, where traditions of truth, morality, and justice have prevailed, but over the past few years, the future of the state's youth is being pushed toward the dark world of drugs and crime," Gandhi said in a post on X in Hindi.

Women are taking to the streets in large numbers because criminals are receiving protection from those in power, while they themselves are met only with neglect, he claimed.

"Gujarat is asking why is the BJP government silent? Which BJP minister is providing cover for all this? Why are Gujarat's traitors being shielded?" he said.

Gandhi said that another major issue that came up in every meeting during the yatra is that of the farmers.

"The recent devastating floods have ruined thousands of Gujarati families and destroyed farmers' crops. When Modi ji was the Chief Minister of Gujarat, his talk of relief packages never stopped. Today, Gujarat is sinking, there's a double-engine government, he is the Prime Minister, yet neither adequate relief is in sight nor any empathy," Gandhi claimed.

"There is intense public outrage in Gujarat every family is worried about their children's future. Every family is asking why aren't farmers' loans being waived, why isn't the drug trade being cleaned up?" he said.

The Congress will continue to listen to the people's concerns and relentlessly expose the failures and corruption of the BJP government, Gandhi said.