BJP's '400 paar' slogan is a joke: Youth Congress president Srinivas BV

Rae Bareli: Indian Youth Congress (IYC) president Srinivas BV has been campaigning across the country for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. But after Rahul Gandhi filed his nomination papers from Rae Barely and Kishori Lal Sharma from Amethi, he has shifted base to these constituencies. 

In an interview to NewsDrum, Srinivas expressed confidence that the Congress will win both the seats and also claimed that the party manifesto and Nyay guarantees are resonating on the ground.

Excerpts:

Q: Now that you are camping in your party’s bastion along with Priyanka Gandhi in Amethi and Rae Bareli, what sense do you gather from the ground?

A: There is an unwavering support and enthusiasm among the voters and party workers. This has been a home to Congress. We are charged up and for sure win both the seats comfortably. People have understood BJP’s bigotry and are determined to vote them out of power. BJP is disconnected from the ground. People are showing faith in Rahul Gandhi ji, Priyanka Gandhi ji and in the Congress manifesto.

Q: What makes you believe that Rahul Gandhi will be able to save one bastion (Rae Bareli) after losing another (Amethi) in 2019?

A: People are resonating with issues and the vision addressed by our leader Rahul Gandhi ji. Visuals from BJY (Bharat Jodo Yatra) display the love and support for him. 

Whether it's the issue of frequent paper leaks, unemployment or unbridled inflation, people are feeling cheated by BJP. Rahul Gandhi ji has walked thousands of kilometres to save India from these fascist forces whose politics is filled with hatred and communalism. Either their MPs like Smriti Irani are missing or unwilling to listen to the woes of the people. People are now missing the development and connection with their leader that they had with the Gandhi family. 

Deceit has been BJP's tendency, but people have now seen through its designs. We are winning these seats with huge margins. 4 June ko Mohabbat ki Dukaan lagne jaa rhi hai.

Q: Isn't camping by top leaders a sign of nervousness? Had you been confident of winning Amethi back and retaining Rae Bareli, you would have focussed elsewhere on winning more seats.

A: This is nothing new. It has been a tradition for the IYC cadre to camp in these seats. 

IYC has started door-to-door campaigns across the country for Nyay Guarantee schemes. 

We have also started an IVR number campaign in which we have registered over 4,00,000 calls till date. 

This has been our moral commitment to the people of Amethi and Rae Bareli that we spend time with them. This is not a constituency for us. This is our family, our home. Priyanka ji has campaigned and addressed in different parts of the country, and now she is at her home.

Q: Both these constituencies have voted above local issues in national interest for several decades, thus electing several prime ministers. This can be interpreted in two ways. They would vote for Rahul Gandhi to make him the next PM. Another aspect is that they would vote for Modi by rising above local issues. What is your take on this?

A: People of Amethi and Rae Bareli are aware enough to know that it is in the national interest to vote for the Congress and Rahul Gandhi ji. Whether it's the matter of Chinese incursion in Indian territory or the derailment of growth and development, BJP has nothing new to offer. They have failed to fulfil their promises. That's why they are spitting venom of hatred. 

There used to be dignity in the Prime Minister’s post, but now it has been reduced to fake news and misinformation. What do you make of statements of PM Narendra Modi when he says ‘Bhains Le lenge' and ‘Mangalsutra le lenge’? 

People believe that we need to vote for Congress and our visionary leader Rahul Gandhi ji for a brighter future. NYAY Patra has it all, from job security to social justice it has everything in the people’s and nation’s interest.

Q: While the caste census has been propagated for a long since BJY days, other schemes such as Rs 1 lakh to unemployed youth and poor women have not reached the ground. At some places, it has been observed that voters are suspicious about these schemes. How is this going to help Congress in real terms?

A: IYC has been reaching out to people with its campaign ‘NYAY Guarantee Card’ and door-to-door NYAY Patra distribution. If you look at our socials, our network of volunteers and workers are doing it tirelessly every day. The contents of manifesto are talking topics of the nation. 

The entire country knows how PM Modi tried to spread lies about it. He is almost talking about it every day. It has already become a discussion in every household. It promises a vision for a better India with its 30 lakh government jobs, apprenticeships to youth, women empowerment, border security, guaranteed MSP to farmers, abolishing the Agnipath scheme, supporting medium and small businesses and many more remarkable schemes. It has made BJP and PM Modi sleepless.

Q: The entire election is about whether BJP or NDA will win over 400 seats or not. No one is talking about how many seats Congress will win. How is this a positive for Congress?

A: These are fake projections and false promises. It looks like the replication of 2004’s BJP’s India Shining Campaign. Their ‘400 Paar’ has become a joke, Social media is filled with memes on it. If they were so sure, why did they have to jail opposition leaders?

Anyways, they have lost elections whenever they put a number and target. Whether it was Bengal, Karnataka or Delhi. This time as well, they are losing. 

There is an underlying current, wherever I go people are outraged and ready to vote them out of power. Even BJP leaders are saying that they are not winning this time. INDIA bloc will win the elections and that too with a huge margin.