Note ban idea was given to Modi by RSS ideologue, claims Rahul

Kalaburagi (Karnataka), February 13

Accusing the RSS of trying to “capture” every institution in the country, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said it was a “particular ideologue” of the Sangh Parivar outfit who gave the idea of the note ban to the prime minister.

“Do you know where the idea of note bandi (note ban) came from? Do you know who gave the idea of note bandi to the Prime Minister of India? It was not RBI, it was not Arun Jaitley (finance minister), it was not an officer in the Finance Ministry,” Gandhi said.

“It was a particular ideologue of the RSS. Now you imagine the RSS places an idea into the prime minister’s mind and the prime minister launches that idea,” he said.

Suggesting it was the design of the RSS and the BJP, who are  convinced that it is only they who know everything and are  taking such “disastrous” decisions, he said even a child would say it was not a good idea to “destroy” Rs 500 and Rs 1000  notes that allowed corrupt to convert black money into white.

The Congress president was speaking during an interaction with professionals and business community on the last day of his four day ‘Janashirvad Yatra’, in the northern Karnataka region here.

Gandhi also alleged that ministers in the NDA government were not operating independently, as RSS men were stationed in each ministry.

“In every single ministry in India, national level there is an OSD (Officer on Special Duty) from RSS working with the minister...In every ministry in India, there is a man from RSS who works with the minister. The minister is not operating on his own,” he said.

Stating that the ministers are being guided by RSS on what to do, he said “the approach is of capture, the approach is here is an institution and let us capture it; as opposed to allowing an institution to serve the people of India and allowing the people of India to capture the institution.”     

Noting that the Congress believes in the idea that institutions should be controlled by people, Gandhi said the job of a political party is to run a political system and not capture or run the institutions and shape them according to their beliefs.

“This is the fundamental conflict we have with the BJP. Their idea is wherever they go they plant people with their ideology into that organisation,” he said adding that Congress’ idea is to “democratise” institutions, while BJP believes in “bureaucratising” them.

During his interaction, Gandhi also shared his vision of having many more women MPs and chief ministers in the country.

Stating that there are hardly any women in Parliament, Gandhi said “first thing I feel is important and I can do it in the Congress party and I will do it in the Congress party, is to bring more and more ladies into the political system, into the Vidhan Sabha, into the Rajya Sabha.” — PTI