‘MP just a tag’: Rahul gets rousing welcome in Wayanad

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday received a rousing reception in Wayanad on his first visit to the constituency after his disqualification as a Lok Sabha member.

Addressing the gathering, Rahul said that the disqualification would only deepen his relationship with the people of Wayanad and that the Member of Parliament was just a tag or position.

He also said that while the BJP was trying to divide the people, he would keep on uniting people.

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Accompanied by his sister and Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi, Rahul reached Kalpetta town at around 4 pm. Party workers and supporters from Wayanad and nearby districts thronged the roads of Kalpetta with placards in support of Rahul.

As the chopper with Rahul landed, party workers and supporters raised slogans in support of Gandhi and against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP-RSS.

Rahul and Priyanka proceeded to the venue of the public meeting in an open vehicle carrying the title ‘Satyameva Jayathe’.

“MP is just a tag or position. They can take away the MP tag and my house and may even put me in jail. But they can’t stop me from representing the people of Wayanad,” said Rahul who had won with a huge margin of 4.3 lakh votes in 2019.

He said that the disqualification only deepened his relation with people of Wayanad. “My relationship with the people of Wayanad is that of a family member or a brother or a son. It was not interesting to live in a house as hundreds of people of Wayanad lost their houses in floods,” Rahul said.

Reiterating that he would continue his fight against the Modi government, Rahul said that he knew that what he was doing was right as he was being attacked by the BJP.

“The more I am attacked, the more I understand that what I am doing is right. The BJP did not realise that their opponent could not be intimidated. The questions I raised with regard to Modi’s connection with Gautam Adani are still remaining unanswered,” the former Congress party president said.

“People of India want to live in a country that is free and where the children could learn what they chose. No one wants to live in a country where four or five people own the entire country,” Rahul said.

'Dictatorship symptom'

Priyanka said that the attack on Rahul was a symptom of dictatorship. “It is strange that one person is being attacked by the entire government for raising questions. When institutions are failing to ensure checks and balances it is the duty of people to ensure it,” she said.

The Congress leader's presence at the meeting assumed more significance as there were reports that Priyanka may contest from Wayanad in case of a bypoll.