Indians are Arjun, will break Modi's chakravyuh: Rahul Gandhi's fresh salvo

Rahul Gandhi alleged that the Centre waived off Rs 16 trillion debt of the industrialists but collected Rs 8,500 crore from the poor Indians, who are unable to maintain "even the minimum balance"

Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday launched a attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of supporting crony capitalism through his policies.

In a post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), he alleged that the Modi government is engaged in extracting “even the empty pockets of common Indians”. Gandhi alleged that the Centre waived off Rs 16 trillion debt of industrialists but collected Rs 8,500 crore from poor Indians who are unable to maintain even the minimum balance.

His was referring to the public sector banks collecting Rs 8,500 crore between FY 2019-20 as penalty from customers for not maintaining average monthly balance in their bank accounts. This data was shared in the Parliament on Monday.

 

नरेंद्र मोदी के अमृतकाल में आम भारतीयों की ‘खाली जेब’ भी काटी जा रही है।

मित्र उद्योगपतियों के 16 लाख करोड़ माफ कर देने वाली सरकार ने ‘मिनिमम बैलेंस’ तक मेंटेन न कर पा रहे गरीब भारतवासियों से 8500 करोड़ रुपए वसूल लिए हैं।

‘जुर्माना तंत्र’ मोदी के चक्रव्यूह का वो द्वार है जिसके…

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 30, 2024

“The 'penalty system' is the door of Modi's Chakravyuh through which an attempt is being made to break the back of the common Indian,” Gandhi said, adding that Indians are not Abhimanyu but Arjuna and they know how to answer back by breaking the ‘chakravyuh’.

Rahul Gandhi's reference to Mahabharata in Lok Sabha

Gandhi’s remarks were a reference to the popular Hindu mythological epic Mahabharata. The ancient text features Arjuna and his son Abhimanyu. During the great war between the Pandavas and the Kauravas, young Abhimanyu was killed after being trapped in a complex military formation called the 'chakravyuh' laid by the Kauravas.

During his address to the Parliament on Budget 2024 on Monday, Gandhi had evoked the ‘chakravyuh’ reference in Lok Sabha, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has trapped Indians in a modern-day chakravyuh.

He said that six people were at the centre of this chakravyuh: Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and billionaires Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani.

“I did a little research and found out that 'chakravyuh' is also known as 'padmavuyh' - which means 'lotus formation'....in the 21st century, a new 'chakravyuh' has been formed in the form of a lotus. The Prime Minister wears its symbol on his chest….,” Gandhi said, adding that what was done with Abhimanyu is being done with India.

He said the Centre had failed the youth, farmers, women, small and medium businesses and the middle class Indians through “tax terrorism”  policies as seen in the Budget, presented on July 23.

The Opposition earlier labelled it to be a “kursi bachao” (save power) budget because of the policies tweaked in the favour of Bihar and Andhra Pradesh, where the ruling parties have extended support to the Centre in forming the government.