The BJP on Tuesday alleged that the unrest in France and the ongoing protests in Delhi are connected, and accused Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi of acting in concert with “foreign forces” to destabilise India’s elected government.
The charge comes amid nationwide protests by the Congress and the INDIA bloc over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The opposition has demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, citing reports that he acted unilaterally, and has also alleged that names of around 13 crore voters were removed irregularly.
BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia cited media reports referring to a Fox News programme, which claimed that communist organisations and extremist groups were working together across nine countries to topple democratically elected governments under a so-called “red-green alliance”. He further alleged that representatives of an international communist platform, “Progressive International”, had visited Delhi in April last year and met senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.
Bhatia said these developments showed Congress and Rahul Gandhi had become “tools” of anti-democratic forces abroad, and questioned Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Vietnam amid the current protest climate. Congress, however, denied the allegations, saying the BJP was making false claims to divert attention from alleged voter roll irregularities and public anger against the Election Commission leadership.
