New Delhi, Mar 16: The Indian National Congress on Saturday welcomed the announcement of the Lok Sabha elections by the Election Commission of India and said that the election is ‘not general but special’ as it will decide whether the Constitution of India and democracy will be protected or not.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on social media post X said that the 2024 Lok Sabha polls will open the ‘door of Nyay’ for India.

He said, “This would be perhaps the last chance to save democracy and our Constitution from dictatorship”.
“We the people of India will together fight against hatred, loot, unemployment, price rise and atrocities. Haath Badlega Halaat,” Kharge said.

Meanwhile, addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters here, Congress leader Pawan Khera said, “This election will decide whether this country and our democracy will run on the shoulders of labourers, farmers, middle class or on the shoulder of some select capitalists”.

“In the last ten years, the Constitution and democracy has been repeatedly violated by the BJP government. Be it suppressing the voice of the Opposition through ED/CBI or resorting to lathicharge on unemployed youth or torturing women. More than 700 farmers were martyred for demanding their right. Under this government, people from all sections of the society have been harassed,” the Congress leader alleged.

A few agencies have made democracy the slave of a greedy dictator, Khera also alleged.

Slamming the BJP on the electoral bonds issue, Khera said, “BJP’s policy of ‘Chanda Do aur Dhanda Lo (give donation and take business) has been exposed in front of the entire country. The data has been deliberately hidden for years so that it does not come out in front of the people”.

Calling March 17 as a historic day for the country as the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra by Rahul Gandhi concludes, he said that during the yatra, Rahul Gandhi raised the voice of the people from the streets to the Parliament, which has been welcomed by the people of the country.

In the last 10 years, Congress has fulfilled the guarantees it given in the states. Therefore the public has faith in our five guarantees of justice.

UNI