On Rahul Gandhi's Hindus, Agnipath scheme charges, BJP's point-by-point rebuttal

Rahul Gandhi's speech in Lok Sabha updates: Lok Sabha on Monday witnessed a fiery speech by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, who launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party on several issues, including the Agnipath Scheme and NEET-UG paper leak. During his speech, the lower house of Parliament also saw Narendra Modi intervene twice when Rahul Gandhi accused leaders of the ruling party of dividing people on communal lines. PM Narendra Modi slammed the Congress leader for calling the entire Hindu community violent.

Later, holding a press conference, Union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw, Kiren Rijiju and Rajya Sabha MP Sudhanshu Trivedi, in a point-by-point rebuttal, accused Rahul Gandhi of denigrating the responsible position of the Leader of Opposition with his “extremely irresponsible” speech in Lok Sabha in which he made “untruthful” claims about a host of issues, including Agnipath scheme and compensation to locals in Ayodhya.

Rahul Gandhi was speaking during the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the president's address to a joint sitting of Parliament.

Rahul Gandhi on ‘Hindus’ and communal violence

Rahul Gandhi claimed that leaders of the BJP are not Hindus as they engage in “violence and hate”. Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit back, accusing the Congress leader of calling the entire Hindu community violent. Some portions of Rahul Gandhi's speech have been expunged later.

"It is not just one religion that talks about courage. In fact, all our religions talk about courage," Rahul Gandhi said in his debut speech as the leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Holding up pictures of Lord Shiva, Guru Nanak and Jesus Christ, the Congress leader referred to Hinduism, Islam, Sikhism, Christianity, Buddhism and Jainism to underline the importance of fearlessness. He also cited the attributes of Lord Shiva and the teachings of Guru Nanak, Jesus Christ, Buddha and Mahavir to state that all religions and great people of the country have said "daro mat, darao mat (do not be scared, do not scare others)".

How BJP reacted

PM Narendra Modi: Intervening during Rahul Gandhi's speech, Modi said, "This issue is very serious. Calling the entire Hindu community violent is a serious issue."

Amit Shah: Union home minister Amit Shah sought the Congress leader's apology to the House and the country for hurting the feelings of crores of people who take pride in identifying themselves as Hindus.

He said the ruckus created by the opposition cannot drown the fact that the words – "those who call themselves Hindus indulge in violence" – were used in the House.

Amit Shah spoke of the Emergency and 1984 anti-Sikhs riots to hit back at Gandhi, saying he has no right to talk about non-violence when the Congress had spread "ideological terror" in the country.

JP Nadda: BJP president JP Nadda demanded an apology from Rahul Gandhi alleging that he spoke “lies” and reflected “Hindu hatred” and that he has not learnt from the mandate of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

"First day, worst show! Lies Hindu hatred = Rahul Gandhi Ji in Parliament. Third Time Fail LoP has a knack for agitated, flawed logic. His speech today has shown that neither has he understood the mandate of 2024 (his third successive loss) nor does he have any humility," JP Nadda posted on X.

"Rahul Gandhi Ji must immediately APOLOGISE to all Hindus for terming them as violent. This is the same person who was telling foreign diplomats that Hindus are terrorists. This intrinsic hate towards Hindus must stop," he added.

Sudhanshu Trivedi: The Rajya Sabha MP said whatever Rahul Gandhi says reflects his mindset.

S Jaishankar: The external affairs minister also hit out at Rahul Gandhi for his remarks in the Parliament and accused him of "attacking Hindus."

"This is now the Leader of Opposition. Who attacks Hindus while professing brotherhood to all. Who disparages the Indian Army's bravery, while expressing concern for their welfare. Who tears up Cabinet decisions, while preaching respect for Constitution. Welcome to the politics of the Congress Party," Jaishankar posted on X.

Rahul Gandhi on Agnipath Scheme

Referring to the Agnipath scheme for short-term military recruitment, Rahul Gandhi said the government regards the Agniveers as “use-and-throw labourers” and does not even give them the status of a "shaheed" (martyr).

Defence minister's rebuttal

Rajnath Singh: The defence minister intervened to rebut Rahul Gandhi's charge, saying it was rolled out after taking suggestions from 158 organisations.

Rajnath Singh also said an Agniveer who lays down his life in the line of duty gets a compensation of ₹1 crore.

The Union minister asked the former Congress president not to mislead Parliament and also requested Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to expunge the former Congress president's claims on the Agnipath scheme.