NDA leaders hit out at Rahul over Gen Z post

Patna: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s appeal to Gen Z to protect democracy has drawn sharp criticism from the NDA with BJP and JD(U) leaders accusing him of trying to incite unrest in the country. Their attack came even though Prime Minister Narendra Modi, speaking in Imphal while congratulating Nepal’s interim PM Sushila Kirki, had also praised Gen Z in the neighbouring country for “cleaning streets” and “upholding democratic values despite political instability”.

Union minister Giriraj Singh said Rahul was provoking sections of society for political gain. “Rahul is frustrated. Sometimes he imitates PM Narendra Modi, sometimes speaks of Gen Z,” Singh said.


Rahul, in his social media post, alleged that Congress supporters’ names were deliberately deleted from voter lists in Aland, Karnataka, in 2023. He wrote in Hindi, “The nation's youth, students and Gen Z will defend the Constitution, protect democracy and stop vote theft. I always stand with them. Jai Hind!”

JD(U) leader and water resources department minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary said Rahul’s words reflected desperation. “His language reveals how desperate he is. He wants to create an atmosphere of anarchy in the country. His mental state is such that Rahul understands he cannot come to power through constitutional means, so he speaks without thinking,” Choudhary said.

At a press conference in Patna, BJP national spokesperson and former Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasad accused Rahul of lowering the dignity of the leader of opposition’s office. “Does Rahul want to spread anarchy in the name of Gen Z? He is inciting violence and anarchy in its name. Stop playing with the country’s democracy. His ecosystem works at his behest,” Prasad said.

He added, “Democracy runs on public shame and responsibility. It runs on a process of uniting the country, not dividing it. We strongly condemn this. He imparts ‘knowledge’ to the nation, but the people get ‘terrified’. Lying, making false allegations and distorting facts has become Rahul Gandhi’s nature. He is 55 years old, but when will he mature?”