NEW DELHI: Rahul Gandhi, leader of the opposition in Lok Sabha, made a faux pas while addressing the House during the debate on the Constitution on Saturday. The Congress leader, while narrating an incident from the Hindu Epic Mahabharata, addressed Eklavya as a 7-year-old “young man” instead of a kid, leaving the NDA MPs in splits. However, he later corrected himself. The Gandhi scion said like Eklayva, who was asked to cut his thumb, the government has been cutting the thumbs of youth, who prepare for exams only to realise that paper gets leaked. “The manner in which Dronacharya cut off the thumb of Eklavya, you are busy cutting off the thumb of the entire nation…When you handover Dharavi to Adani, you cut off the thumb of entrepreneurs, small and medium businesses. When you handover India’s ports, airports and defence industry to Adani, you cut off the thumbs of all fair play business of India who work honestly,” Rahul Gandhi said. Watch: Rahul Gandhi’s Lok Sabha gaffe leaves NDA MPs in splits
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The Congress leader also quoted VD Savarkar to attack the BJP, saying the Hindutva ideologue “did not find anything” Indian about India’s Constitution and that he was more inclined towards Hindu scripture Manusmriti than the Constitution that the constituent assembly prepared. Rahul Gandhi, including in his recent speeches, has been invoking Gods, Hindu scriptures and symbols to make political attacks on the BJP. In his last speech in Parliament, Rahul Gandhi invoked the “Chakravyuha” of Mahabharata to accuse the Narendra Modi government of spreading fear and alleged that power was centred around only 6 people. “Thousands of years ago, in Kurukshetra, six people trapped Abhimanyu in a ‘Chakravyuh’ and killed him. I did a little research and found out that ‘Chakravyuha’ is also known as ‘Padmavuyh’ – which means ‘Lotus formation’. Chakravyuh’ is in the shape of a Lotus. In the 21st century, a new ‘Chakravyuh’ has been formed – that too in the form of a Lotus,” Rahul had said. “The Prime Minister wears its symbol on his chest. What was done with Abhimanyu, is being down with India – the youth, farmers, women, small and medium businesses. Abhimanyu was killed by six people. Today, too there are six people in the centre of ‘Chakravyuha’,” he had further alleged.
