Buffed-up Rahul Gandhi lands a few punches at the Modi govt

Back from his new year vacation, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi seems all charged up. He attacked the Narendra Modi government on multiple fronts: from the Pathankot terror attack, to the Start Up India mission and the intolerance debate.

Setting the tone ahead of the Budget Session that begins next month, Gandhi accused the government of not being serious about the GST Bill.

Also read - Congress has govt on the run. It's unwilling to concede an inch on GST

The Congress vice-president was addressing a group of management students at the Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS) in Mumbai. He later conducted a 'padyatra' from Bandra Bandstand to Dharavi.

Multi-pronged attack

Photo: AFP/Punit Paranjpe

Wearing a tight grey t-shirt, Gandhi flexed his muscles both literally and politically.

Attacking Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on the GST issue, he said "Jaitleyji came to see me and the press said that he spoke to me about GST. The truth is that he came to invite me for his daughter's wedding".

He didn't even spare the PM Narendra Modi's pet Start Up India scheme that was launched on Saturday.

"Start-ups require an ecosystem where ideas can flow freely. The real challenge is to create an environment in which small businesses can grow. Intolerance and start-ups can't go together," he said, stressing that India needs "flexibility and openness".

Start-ups need an ecosystem where ideas can flow freely. Start-ups and intolerance don't go together

Gandhi joined the chorus against National Security Advisor Ajit Doval for his handling of the Pathankot terror attack.

"The attack on Pathankot was handled by the National Security Adviser. That is not his job. The NSA's job is not to develop tactics but build strategy. The government is not consulting the best people to deal with foreign affairs," he said.

What's the significance?

Photo: Indian National Congress

Though the Congress vice-president has just reiterated his party's line on these issues, it is significant that he has entered the larger political debate through his speech at the management school

The most important aspect here is the timing.

Assembly elections in 5 states - Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Puducherrry - are round the corner. His attack on the central government comes at a time when Modi is all set to start his campaign in these states. The PM is going to Kokrajhar and Guwahati on 19 January. Rahul has taken the lead in this battle.

He smartly grabbed the airtime on the news channels hours before the PM was to speak at the launch of the Start Up India mission.

Gandhi has made it clear that there is no way the government can get the GST Bill passed without taking the Opposition on board. He also put the ball in the government's court by saying, "accept our demands on GST. We will pass it in 15 minutes".

Just before the Winter Session, PM Modi had a short meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former PM Manmohan Singh, in which the GST was discussed.

But the stand of the party has been defined by Rahul. Now there isn't much chance of the Bill being passed unless the government bends before the Opposition.

This would be again seen as a victory for the Opposition ahead of the Assembly elections.

Gandhi has drawn first blood and the battle will intensify in the days to come. We can expect more sparks when Gandhi shares a stage with Jaitley and other Central ministers in two weeks time at the Invest Karnataka meet in Bengaluru.

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