But refuses to get drawn into Modi, corruption, inflation debate
In his first media interview in a decade, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Monday called for transforming the system of governance and blamed the BJP-led Gujarat Government for the 2002 riots, but avoided specific answers to a host of uncomfortable questions, including need for an apology or regret for the 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
Rahul’s thrust was the empowerment of women and youth, something he kept going back repeatedly when he was asked to comment on the culpability of Ashok Chavan in the Adarsh scam or his views on Arvind Kejriwal or a direct debate with BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi in the run up to the lok Sabha polls.
Those who expected Rahul to use the Times Now interview to take an aggressive posturing against Modi would be disappointed. Rahul did hold the Modi Government responsible for the Gujarat riots while he defended the role of the Congress regime in 1984 anti-Sikh pogrom. But he didn’t attack Modi beyond this point.
Pointing out that Modi was the CM when the Gujarat riots happened, Rahul said, “What all I am saying is that in Gujarat the Government of the time aided and abetted the riots while in 1984 the day of Government did every bit to avoid.”
When asked if he agreed with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s view that Modi presided over the “mass massacre” of innocents on the streets of Ahmedabad, Rahul said, “What the Prime Minister is saying is the fact. Gujarat happened and people died.”
When asked further on the role of Modi in the riots, Rahul said, “Modi was the Chief Minister then.”
When pressed further on how he could attack Modi on the Gujarat riots when courts and SIT have given him a clean chit, Rahul said, “It is not me. It is a large number of people who saw the government of Gujarat being involved in the riots. I mean, people saw it. I am not the person who saw it. Your colleagues saw it. Your colleagues told me. They saw the administration actively attacking the minorities.”
To persistent questioning on the role of the Congressmen in the 1984 riots, Rahul admitted that some Congressmen were probably involved in the 1984 riots and said legal process was on against them.
However, despite repeated questioning on whether he would express regret or apology for the 1984 riots, Rahul refused to give specific answers and stuck to his point that loss of innocent lives are painful and horrific. “I wasn’t involved in the riots at all. It wasn’t that I was a part of it,” he added at length.
On asked if he was not named the Congress PM nominee because of fear that his party will lose the elections, Rahul delved into the past, talked about death of his grandmother Indira Gandhi and his father Rajiv Gandhi and said he had seen so much adversity that he had nothing to fear.
“I saw my father combating the system on daily basis. I saw him die. I saw my grandmother die. There is nothing I fear any more. I’ve seen the worst,” he said.
To a question as to what was his view on the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate, he said, “I think, we will defeat the BJP in the next elections....I will win the election. I am reasonably confident.”
On asked again about his views on Modi, Rahul said he was not thinking of anything, but changing the system and unleashing the power of people. “I’m focussed on that and I am not thinking anything else.”
Asked if he would take responsibility if the Congress didn’t win the election, he said, “If we don’t win, I am the vice-president of the party. I will take responsibility.”
On naming Modi as PM candidate, he said, “BJP believes in concentration of power in one person. I fundamentally disagree with that. I believe in democracy. I believe in opening of the system.... We have fundamentally different philosophies.”
On a question about whether he was open to PM’s post or avoiding a difficult contest against Modi, Rahul referred to his AICC speech and said announcing a PM candidate before an election is “announcing your PM without asking your MPs. It is not actually written in the Constitution. We don’t believe in breaking the tradition and system.”
He also avoided direct reply to questions on whether political parties should be brought under the purview of RTI, saying Parliament should decide on it if political parties are unanimous on this. “My position is that the more openness, the better.”
Throughout the interview, Rahul devoted much of the time talking about how the present system was a burden on the people, how people suffered because of it, how there was pressing need to empower women and youth, and how democracy must be more representative.
Even when confronted with questions why no action was taken against Ashok Chavan and Himachal CM Virbhdra Singh despite serious corruption charges against them, Rahul against talked about putting in place a system which did not allow any corrupt person to get off scot free. However, he avoided specific answer on why his words and action did not match in these cases.
Rahul avoided any direct reply to what he thought of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, but acknowledged that the AAP had shown how to reach out to people.
On a question, Rahul said he was against the concept of dynasty in politics but felt that dynasty cannot be wished away in a closed system. “I am absolutely against the concept of dynasty. Anybody who knows me knows that and understands that. But you are not going to wish away dynasty in a closed system. You have to open the system,” he said.
The Congress V-P said dynasty or children of politicians becoming powerful happens in the BJP, the DMK, the SP and the Congress. “It happens everywhere,” he said. Asked how Congress was then different, he said, “You have to go into why this is happening.