Agnipath a threat to Army regiments… will hold yatra to protest against it… want Rahul to join: Uttarakhand Congress chief

The Congress is concerned about how the BJP has played with the structure of the Army through the Agnipath scheme. It poses a threat to our regiments. The people of Uttarakhand have significantly contributed to the Army and the issue matters to them.

We also discussed the 2022 Assembly polls and are now trying to rectify mistakes. Rahul (Gandhi) ji and Mallikarjun Kharge ji have started a new programme through which days are allocated to listening to the grievances of different state units. We are sure it will solve our issues.

Q) Rahul Gandhi is expected to visit the state in September and participate in a march. What is the schedule?

We have a bypoll in Bageshwar soon and the party leadership will be busy there. After that, we will plan a yatra for 45-60 days. Through it, we will raise issues with the Agnipath scheme and other problems such as crimes against women and unemployment. We will also discuss local issues such as inflation, the gold scam in Kedarnath, and the situation in Joshimath. We are demanding that Rahul ji join us for at least 10 days.

Q) Is the Congress trying to give a nationwide message from Uttarakhand?

It is true that we have only five Lok Sabha seats in Uttarakhand, but the message which will go from this state on the Agnipath scheme will have a lot of value. A former BJP leader’s son murdered a hotel receptionist (the Ankita Bhandari case). Ankita also said the accused forced her to provide “extra services” to a VIP. The whole country wants to know who that VIP is. We will raise these issues.

Q) How do you see the rise in cases of communal tension in Uttarakhand?

We are continuously talking about this. Through the Bharat Jodo Yatra, we gave a message about how the BJP is creating hatred between people for votes. We never saw such communal tensions previously, but things have changed now. The same person involved in Purola (where a campaign by right-wing activists forced Muslim families in the town to leave) gave a hate speech in Dehradun too. No case has been registered so far. People are openly abusing a community, threatening to kill them, and the police and administration are silent. This shows their (BJP government’s) agenda.

Q) What is the Congress’s stand on UCC in Uttarakhand?

Tribes such as Bhotiya, Tharu, and Buksa are given special rights by the Constitution. When we became a country by unifying different kingdoms, several conditions were laid out, including special arrangements for saving tribal culture.

The BJP did not have an answer when the Congress started asking questions about those rights. They are not talking about the UCC anymore.

Q) But when an expert panel called all political parties in Uttarakhand to share their suggestions on UCC, the Congress did not participate. Why?

The BJP cannot order us to meet them. When they invited us for a meeting, we sent two letters asking them to provide us with copies of the report with suggestions from the people and the rough draft. But they did not do so. They wanted us to just say yes without reading anything.

We will decide our stand after the draft. If the draft is for the welfare of the nation, we have no reason to oppose it. But if they are just trying to set a Hindu-Muslim narrative and take away the rights of people, we will not accept it.

Q) What is your party strategy for the Lok Sabha polls?

We have begun work at the booth level. Our leaders are organising at least three events a month. We are hitting out the BJP and the public is responding to us. Our aim is to win all five Lok Sabha seats in the state.

Former CM Harish Rawat lost the last two elections. What will his role be in the Congress going forward?

We cannot decide someone’s stature through wins and defeats. He is still the seniormost leader in Uttarakhand. Even the current Chief Minister (Pushkar Singh Dhami) does not compare. We will continue to take advice from Rawat ji and utilise the experience and energy he can offer us.

Q) How do you plan to counter the BJP?

We will focus more on local issues. We are not denying the (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi factor. But, it is not what it once used to be.

Today, people can see his silence on the Manipur issue. He does not speak on the death of 700 farmers. His minister’s son runs over farmers. Another minister beats up people in broad daylight. His MP molests international players. No action has been taken in any of these cases.

If you look at the vote percentage, the difference (between Congress and BJP) is just 7-8%. The BJP will not return to power and they will get at least 150 seats less than the last time.

How will you deal with the infighting within the party? Many leaders were reportedly unhappy with party in-charge Devendra Yadav.

At the time of the election, the management by Devendra Yadav was the best. I can vouch for it.

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However, I accept some miscommunication between the leaders. I also accept a lack of restraint in our leaders. Few discussions should have happened behind closed doors. But we have it under control now. The grievances between leaders have been cleared in front of Rahul ji and Kharge ji.