Copyright news18
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra shared a personal anecdote from her childhood to target the Prime Minister-led Central Government, saying that, unlike today, the Prime Minister was accessible back then and the people had freedom to criticise the leader in person. While addressing a poll-bound rally in East Champaran’s Govindganj in Bihar on Thursday, the Congress General Secretary recalled a woman in Amethi scolding her father, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, for failing to install a water tap in her village. She said that the incident reflected the strength of India’s democracy at the time, where even the Prime Minister could be questioned by the people. “When I was 10-12 years old, I saw a woman in Amethi scold my father. She said, ‘tum Rajiv Bhaiya toh ho hamare, Pradhan Mantri hoge lekin aapne bola tha hamare yaha nal (tap) lagaoge par lagaya nahi abhi tak, hum dobara vote nahi denge aapko’… He was the Prime Minister of the country, but a woman in a village scolded him; she was not scared. Nowadays, everyone has to fear. If you ask for your rights, you know the police will beat you and the administration will shut you down. That was not the time. The foundation of our country’s politics was laid by Mahatma Gandhi, in which the people are supreme,” Vadra said as quoted by news agency ANI. #WATCH | Govindganj, East Champaran: Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra says, “When I was 10-12 years old, I saw a woman in Amethi scold my father. She said, ‘tum Rajiv Bhaiya toh ho hamare, Pradhan Mantri hoge lekin aapne bola tha hamare yaha nal (tap) lagaoge par lagaya nahi… pic.twitter.com/oOUznBoRr3 — ANI (@ANI) November 6, 2025 She also asserted that if the Bihar assembly polls are conducted in a free and fair manner, the NDA government will be uprooted, and replaced by a dispensation that would work for the poor, women, and the youth. “BJP leaders urge people to vote for the NDA in the name of religion, and not for development. If this election is free and fair, the people of Bihar will uproot this government and vote for one that will work for the poor, women and the youth,” she said. Reiterating his brother and Lok Sabha Leader of Oppsotion Rahul Gandhi’s “vote chori” allegations, Vadra alleged that 65 lakh votes have been deleted in Bihar. She claimed that “25 lakh fake votes” were added in the Haryana assembly elections. “The Prime Minister of the country, wherever he goes, he says that the opposition leaders are insulting the people in West Bengal, Kerala and Bihar. We are talking about your rights, your empowerment… Yesterday, Rahul Gandhi showed that the votes were rigged in the Haryana elections. 25 lakh fake votes… Today, their arrogance is such that they disrespect your votes. 65 lakh votes have been deleted in Bihar. I can guarantee that if fair elections are conducted here, you people will throw this government and form a new government,” she said as quoted by the news agency. Further alleging that the BJP had kept Nitish Kumar away from its stages, she said the Bihar government is run from Delhi. She said the Prime Minister always pointed out the sizes of photos in the Opposition parties’ posters. “Narendra Modi keeps measuring people’s photos in the posters of the Opposition parties. He is the Prime Minister of the country; doesn’t he have any other work?” Meanwhile, polling is underway for the first phase of the Bihar assembly polls and will be conducted till 6 pm. In some constituencies, polling time has been curtailed to 5 pm. The second phase of voting will be held on November 11, followed by the much-anticipated counting of votes on November 14. (With inputs from agencies)
