Reddy’s ‘Gandhi Parivar’ remark sparks BJP attack on Congress
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday accused the Congress of treating the Gandhi family as the centre of Indian politics rather than as one party leadership among others.
The charge followed remarks by Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Friday, in which he described the national contest as a struggle between the “Sangh Parivar” and the “Gandhi Parivar.” Reddy spoke in Nilambur, Kerala, after receiving the Aryadan Muhammed-2026 Best Public Servant Award.
Reddy called the Sangh Parivar the biggest threat to the country and to democracy. He alleged that it was trying to divide India based on caste, religion, region and language.
He said the Gandhi family stood for sacrifice. He said Mahatma Gandhi, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi had given their lives for the nation, while Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi had given up posts and power.
Reddy added that he was ready to sacrifice his own life for the Gandhi family, that his remaining political mission was to see Rahul Gandhi become prime minister, and that communal forces were engaged in “vote ki chori, party ki chori, symbol ki chori and funds ki chori.” He also alleged that they were stealing the future of the country’s youth, the integrity of the vote and the authority of the Election Commission.
BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari responded on Saturday by sharing a video of the speech. He said the Congress had now admitted that its fight was to return the Gandhi family to power. According to him, the controversy had nothing to do with vote theft, the Election Commission, the Constitution or democracy. “The Congress party’s real objective is to bring the Gandhi-Vadra family back to power,” he said. “For Congress: Parivarwad First, Parivarwad Only.”
Bhandari further argued that the Gandhi-Vadra family was not the guardian of Indian democracy but a threat to it. He listed events he associated with periods of Congress rule: the Emergency, the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, the response after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks, a missed opportunity for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council, India’s inclusion among the “Fragile Five” economies, and high levels of poverty.
The Vishva Hindu Parishad also criticised Reddy and the Congress. VHP spokesperson Vinod Bansal accused the party of anti-India and appeasement politics and of attacking constitutional institutions. Bansal recalled Reddy’s earlier statement that “Congress is Muslim and Muslim is Congress.”
He said the Chief Minister had gone so far as to compare the Sangh with anti-national organisations. Such remarks, Bansal said, did not suit a sitting chief minister. Other BJP leaders described Reddy’s pairing of the Gandhi family with the Sangh Parivar as political flattery of one family and an insult to an organisation they regard as nationalist.
