BJP now engaged in 'satta chori': Kharge on bills to remove PM, CMs

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday alleged that after "vote chori", the BJP is now engaged in "satta chori" by bringing bills to "topple opposition governments within 30 days" and "destabilise" democracy by using arrest as a weapon. Kharge claimed that the bills take away the right of citizens to form or remove their elected government and give that power to institutions like ED-CBI. "It is like running a bulldozer on democracy," the Congress chief said. He made the comments in his opening statement at the meeting with newly-appointed presidents of the District Congress Committees (DCC) of Haryana and Madhya Pradesh at the Indira Bhawan in New Delhi.

Kharge cautioned the DCC chiefs to take special care in forming booth and Mandal committees and ensure that the people on these panels are loyal to the party and do not waver from the ideology of the Congress. "The district president forms the Block Committee under him. He forms Mandal and Booth Committees. When you form these committees, take special care that all these people are loyal to the party and hardworking. Most importantly, they should not waver from the ideology of the Congress," Kharge said.

Kharge said the Congress ruled the country for a long time because of its strong organisation and it was necessary for the ministers to contact the district president first when they went to the district."The district president is the strongest link in the Congress organisation. If the government has to be elected in the state, he plays an important role in getting the candidate elected in the legislative assemblies. If the government has to be formed in the country, your support is needed to win the Lok Sabha," he said and accepted that "In between, there was a slight change in this tradition. Ministers started making their favourite people the district president. Ability and ideology started being ignored. Rahul Gandhi and I realised that we cannot return to power strongly without strengthening our organisation, without giving importance to the district presidents." He urged the Congress leaders to tell the people that the right to vote for everyone in this country is the gift of the Congress.