Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday accused the BJP and RSS of spreading hatred and creating divisions in society, while asserting that the Congress would continue its efforts to promote peace and unity by “opening ‘mohabbat ki dukaan’”. Kharge made the remarks after unfurling the national flag at the Congress headquarters, Indira Bhawan, during the party's 80th Independence Day celebrations.
Addressing Congress leaders and workers, Kharge said Independence Day should not only be an occasion to remember India's freedom struggle but also a time to assess how much the country has progressed towards the aspirations of its freedom fighters. He said successive Congress prime ministers, including Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Rajiv Gandhi and Manmohan Singh, had worked to advance the country according to the challenges of their respective periods.
Kharge also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of taking credit for initiatives undertaken by previous Congress governments after Independence and changing the names of schemes associated with them. He also made a sharp political remark, saying he feared that one day Modi might attempt to bring down the national flag. Kharge's comments came during a speech in which he positioned the Congress as a defender of India's constitutional values and institutions.
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A major part of Kharge's address focused on young people and protests. He claimed that government policies had contributed to growing frustration among the youth and said demonstrations by young people were taking place across the country. Kharge said the Congress supported young people raising their voices over their concerns and argued that peaceful protest was a constitutional right. “The Gen Z raising their voice for their rights are not traitors,” he said, adding that the rights for which Indians had fought during British rule must continue to be protected.
Kharge accused the government of allowing or encouraging what he described as hate campaigns against people protesting against it. Referring to Rahul Gandhi's political messaging, he said the Congress would not respond to political differences with hatred and would instead “embrace everyone” and open a “mohabbat ki dukaan”. The phrase has been repeatedly used by Rahul Gandhi and the Congress to describe their political message of inclusiveness and opposition to what they call divisive politics.
The Congress president also alleged that the BJP and RSS were contributing to social divisions. He said the Congress wanted peace and unity in the country and argued that economic and social prosperity depended on maintaining peace. “Only when there is peace in the country will there be prosperity,” Kharge said, while accusing the Modi government and its political allies of pursuing a politics that creates divisions among people.
Kharge's Independence Day address was attended by Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and several other senior party leaders. His speech combined criticism of the Modi government with appeals for constitutional rights, youth participation and social unity. The Congress president also sought to portray his party as a political force committed to protecting peaceful protest and promoting harmony.
The remarks come amid continuing political differences between the Congress and the BJP over governance, protests, constitutional issues and the country's political direction. Kharge's emphasis on young people's rights and the Congress's “mohabbat ki dukaan” message forms part of the party's broader effort to present itself as an alternative to what it describes as divisive politics. The BJP and RSS have previously rejected such allegations from the Congress, setting the stage for continued political debate over the issues raised in Kharge's address.
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