BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: Taking a swipe at Lok Sabha leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad on Sunday questioned whether the Congress leader had the qualifications to become the Leader of Opposition.
"Rahul Gandhi does not do his homework. His tutor should be changed to who will give him the correct information about India," former Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad told media persons.
The BJP leader’s remarks come in the background of Gandhi's statement calling India's merit system a "flawed" concept during a discussion with professor Sukhadeo Thorat, a member of Telangana's caste survey panel.
"Rahul Gandhi has again made a wise statement. He has said that there is no such thing as a merit system in this country... My first question to Rahul Gandhi is, by what qualification has he become the leader of the opposition?... Where the rules of the merit system have been disregarded, it has been in his appointment," Prasad said in a press conference at Indore.
In his interview with Professor Thorat, Gandhi said that India’s education and bureaucratic systems are biased against Dalits, OBCs, and tribals. "There is a completely flawed concept of merit where I confuse my social position with my capability. For anybody to say that our education system or our bureaucratic entry systems are fair to Dalits, OBCs, and tribals - that's just a complete fallacy," he said.
"The entire narrative is an upper caste narrative. This notion of merit is, actually, itself an unfair idea," he added.
The Congress leader also said that Dalits' fight is not just for the right to water but also for equality and respect and their “rightful share” of power.
“Babasaheb's dream is still incomplete. His fight is not just for the past, it is a fight for today as well - we will fight it with all our might,” Gandhi had said.