PoliticsPunjab
Rahul Gandhi brings Moosewala's father on stage in Sangrur, says killers' mindset roams Punjab
Opening the Congress campaign in Bhagwant Mann's home district, the Leader of Opposition accused the AAP government of failing on drugs and gang violence, while Mallikarjun Kharge called it the BJP's B-team.
Key points
- Rahul Gandhi called Sidhu Moosewala's father on stage at the Insaaf Rally.
- He said the mindset that killed the singer is roaming every corner of Punjab.
- Mallikarjun Kharge called the AAP the BJP's B-team.
Rahul Gandhi opened the Congress campaign for the 2027 Punjab election in Sangrur on Wednesday by calling Sidhu Moosewala’s father on stage, and told the crowd that the mindset which killed the singer now runs through the state.
The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha said he changed his plan for the speech after Balkaur Singh Sidhu greeted him at the Insaaf Rally. “What happened to his son has now become a fashion in Punjab,” he said. “The mindset that shot Sidhu Moosewala in front of everyone, without any fear, that same mindset is roaming around every nook and corner of Punjab today.”
Gandhi recalled the day the singer walked into his office wanting to join the Congress. “He was an impressive guy. He walked into the room. He had tattoos,” he said. Moosewala was shot dead in Mansa district on 29 May 2022, a day after the state police withdrew his security.
The charge against Mann
Sangrur is Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s home district, and Gandhi aimed straight at him. He said he had once seen Mann in the Lok Sabha with alcohol on his breath by 11 am, then added: “I am not saying that Bhagwant Mann shouldn’t drink; that is his personal affair.” But, he said, a chief minister “cannot be under the influence every single evening”.
He tied the state’s troubles to drugs and the loss of jobs. “If there is no industry, no factories, no farming, no agriculture, then there will be drugs, there will be gangsterism, bullets will be fired on the streets,” he said. Of the AAP’s promise to wipe out drugs, he asked: “Where have they eliminated it?” Punjab, he said, needs a government “not like AAP, which is run from Delhi”.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called the state government “a government of drugs and corruption” and the BJP’s B-team. “If we win Punjab, we will win all of India,” he said, urging party leaders to stand united.
The climb is steep. The AAP won 92 of the 117 seats in 2022 and the Congress 18. The AAP had not responded to the speeches by late afternoon.