Rahul Gandhi gets panned for 'betrayal' from foreign soil

New Delhi: The "deep state" in India is "chewing" the Indian state much like in Pakistan, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said in a frontal attack on the Modi government, provoking a predictable backlash on Saturday from the ruling party which branded him a "part-time, immature, unsuccessful leader" who betrayed the country with his remarks made on foreign soil.

During an interactive session at the 'Ideas for India' conference in London on Friday, Gandhi not only mounted a scathing attack on the BJP government but also extended an olive branch to regional parties who he had angered with his comment that they were not capable of taking on the saffron party for want of ideology.

In a blistering assault, Gandhi said the soul of India is under attack from the BJP and "a soul without a voice means nothing and what has happened is that India's voice has been crushed."

Gandhi alleged India's voice has been crushed by the institutional framework of the country itself which is becoming parasitical. "So, the deep state, the CBI, the ED, is now chewing the Indian state and eating it, much like in Pakistan," he asserted. An angry BJP shot back on Saturday, accusing Gandhi of harming India in his "hate" against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and alleged his frequent critical remarks about the country from foreign soil amounted to "betrayal."

BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia launched a sharp attack on the Congress leader for his remarks at the London event where Gandhi accused the ruling party of spreading "kerosene all over the country, you need one spark and we will be in big trouble."

It is the Congress which has been carrying kerosene to incite riots since the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, he alleged, dubbing Gandhi a "part-time, immature, unsuccessful leader of a hopeless Congress" who has often spoken negatively about the country in foreign places like the US, the UK and Singapore. "He keeps making such comments frequently and it will not be wrong to say that this amounts to betraying the country," Bhatia said.

At the 'Ideas for India' conference, Gandhi was at pains to explain away his remarks targeting the regional parties, saying the Congress respects them and does not want to play "the Big Daddy." Gandhi asserted his party will coordinate with regional outfits to launch a nationwide movement against the ruling dispensation. "In no way is the Congress superior to the other opposition parties, we are all fighting the same battle," Gandhi added.