BJP accuses Rahul of doublespeak on proportional representation to SCs

The BJP on Wednesday took on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of double speak when it came to giving proportional representation to Dalits and other communities in his party.
This came after a video surfaced on social media in which former Punjab chief minister Charanjit Singh Channi, currently a Congress MP from Jalandhar, was heard seeking more Dalit representation in the party during a meeting of its Scheduled Caste (SC) wing on Saturday. “I think Charanjit Singh Channi has exposed the gap between Rahul Gandhi’s principles and words as well as the difference between what he says and what he does,” BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla told a press conference at the party headquarters, when he was asked about the Jalandhar MP’s comments.
He alleged that although Gandhi had stolen the ‘jannayak’ title from former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur, he was unable to do social justice in his own party as a jannayak would do. “He talks about ‘jitni abadi utni bhagidari (giving proportional representation to people belonging to different castes according to their population), raises issues of OBCs, SCs, STs and caste census but there is a difference between the principles he outlines and what he implements,” Poonawalla charged.
“When Rahul Gandhi’s party leader Charanjit Singh Channi, who comes from the SC, is saying that his community members are not getting justice, then he is not the ‘jannayak’ of his own party,” he added.
The BJP spokesperson said Gandhi’s insistence on giving proportional representation to people based on their population should be implemented in the party in view of the population of the SCs in Punjab.
“But, Rahul Gandhi’s principles are like ‘haathi ke daant dikhane ke aur, khane ke aur (all show, no substance),” he added.
Taking a swipe at the Congress over Channi’s remarks, Poonawalla alleged the main opposition party is embroiled in infighting across all state units of the party.