‘The proof is in the phone’: Rahul Gandhi dares PM Modi to debate on anti-national charge

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Friday escalated his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, renewing his challenge for a one-on-one public debate and claiming that the Prime Minister would not be able to remain in office after facing him.

In a string of video clips released by the Congress on Friday, Gandhi said, “I keep repeating it: the Prime Minister’s political career—mark my words, the Prime Minister’s political career will be over if he comes and debates me. He knows that and I know that. He keeps calling me anti-national. I want to show the nation exactly who’s anti-national. Exactly who’s controlled by whom and since when. And he knows the truth of that”.

Gandhi said he did not want a debate where the two sides deliver speeches. “I want Narendra Modi to make allegations against me and I want to make allegations against him,” he said.

In another clip, the Congress leader was asked if he had evidence to back up his accusations. “The proof is here,” he said, pointing to his mobile phone. “It’s in this phone. The Prime Minister knows it because he taps my phone. The moment it comes for the debate, one-on-one debate, everybody will know who’s controlled by foreign powers, who’s an anti-national, since when he’s been an anti-national, and lots of other details that I know and are on my phone,” he said.

There was no immediate response from the BJP.

Why is Rahul Gandhi seeking public debate

When asked why he was seeking a public debate instead of speaking in Parliament, Gandhi said, according to a PTI report, that he had to demand a public debate because he wasn’t allowed to speak in Parliament. “You did not let me talk on the farm bills, vote chori, SIR, China, on (Gen) Naravane’s book, Epstein. I want a one-on-one debate. I don’t want a debate entailing long speeches,” the Congress leader said, responding to a question during an “Ask Me” session on Instagram.

Friday’s barbs follow a back-and-forth between the government and the Opposition. PM Modi, speaking at an interaction with CRPF in Bastar, told them that the country won its decades-long battle against Naxalism but the “dimagi Naxals” have infiltrated political parties and organisations.

Union home minister Amit Shah has previously accused Gandhi of avoiding parliamentary debate, saying the government was ready to debate the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls.

“Rahul holds a copy of the Constitution in his hand but respects neither the document nor the position he holds,” Shah told a rally of BJP workers on October 30.

Gandhi challenged PM Modi to a public debate after the ruling BJP questioned the Opposition’s motives for its campaign against chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the alleged vote theft and the special intensive revision of the electoral roll.

Gandhi’s challenge follows his earlier allegation that Modi became and remained Prime Minister with “foreign help”, and that India’s financial system is “backed by foreign forces”.