Congress will bounce back in Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan, LoP Tika Ram Jully tells ETV Bharat

In an exclusive conversation with ETV Bharat, Tikaram Jully, who has been named by the Congress as the Leader of the Opposition in the 16th Rajasthan Assembly, said that Congress was a "strong opposition" while expressing confidence that the grand old party will do better in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections in Rajasthan.

Jaipur: Former minister and MLA from Alwar Rural assembly seat, Tika Ram Jully, who has been named by the Congress as the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajasthan assembly, has said that he was ready for the job at hand and will try his best to live up to the expectations of the party high command. In a special conversation with ETV Bharat, Jully said, “I will try my best to live up to the expectations and the confidence that the high command has expressed in me. The common people of Rajasthan have elected us and sent us to the assembly. Protecting their interests and fighting for their rights is my priority. When the opposition comes to power, it forgets the past. But there should not be such decisions which are against the people of the state. This will be our main responsibility”.

Jully fiercely targeted the Bhajan Lal led Rajasthan government and the Modi government at the Centre and accused them of doing “politics of selfishness”. On the question of cornering the Bhajan Lal led BJP government, Jully said that the opposition party was “very strong”. “Congress has 70 MLAs. MLAs from other parties and independents are also with us. We will all work together and will take the advantage of the experience of seniors. The welfare schemes for the villages and road connectivity will be our priority,” he said.

Over the one month tenure of the Bhajan Lal government in the state, Jully said that “not a single decision has been taken till now”. “The decision has been taken that the schemes of the Gehlot government should be stopped. The names of the schemes of the Congress government should be changed. Farmers are being provided electricity at night. Decisions have been taken to take away the jobs of the youth. 50 days have passed of the 100 day action plan. They are doing politics of show off. They are doing politics in the name of caste and religion. They have nothing to do with the general public,” he said.

On the question of the BJP government closing the schemes of the previous Congress government, Jully said that recruitment of 50,000 Mahatma Gandhi preraks had been stalled. “The name of Indira Rasoi was changed to Annapurna Rasoi. Its budget was cut by 50 percent. The price of onion for farmers fell sharply. Farmers are being provided electricity supply at night. 50 year old bills are suddenly appearing in front of farmers today. PHED connections are being disconnected. All their decisions are arbitrary,” he said.

On the question of Lok Sabha election strategy, Jully said that the Congress will fight the Lok Sabha elections with strength. “From the point of view of Congress, good results will come in Rajasthan and the country. PM Modi used to say that he will double the income of farmers and every family will be given a permanent house besides two crore jobs every year. What happened to these promises? Every time a new phrase and a new hoax is their policy,” Jully said.

On the inauguration of the Ram temple, Jully said, “Ram is in my name only and I am a devotee of Hanumanji. Former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi had got the locks of the temple opened, but Congress never played politics of religion. Where is the need for an invitation to go to God's court? Whom Ram will call, he will go on his own. They are just doing politics on this. If Lord Ram's photo is removed, PM Modi's will be visible first.

When the question of the sanctity of the incomplete temple is raised, an atmosphere is created against the Shankaracharyas. They are in a hurry for the Lok Sabha elections,” he said. Regarding ED raid at the house of former minister Mahesh Joshi, Jully said, “ED should take proper action. Whoever is guilty, take action against him. But why does ED wake up even before the elections? ED came even before the assembly elections when it raided Rajeev Arora, Dharmendra Rathore and Govind Singh Dotasara. Now it has come again before the Lok Sabha elections.

On the question of the Congress's strategy to create Dalit vote bank by making him the Leader of Opposition, Jully said that Dalits have been “traditional voters of Congress, who stand strongly in support of the party”. “This time Dalits will come together with Congress with more strength, because for the first time a Dalit has got a chance as the opposition leader, so the Dalit society is also looking towards it,” he said.