Rahul Gandhi tears into Centre over reliance on Chinese products, failure of ‘Make in India’ programme
New Delhi, Feb 3: Rahul Gandhi, wearing his trademark white half sleeves T-shirt, lambasted the ruling party over India’s increasing reliance on Chinese products, calling it a serious national security concern while speaking on Monday as Leader of Opposition during the Motion of Thanks on the President’s Address in the Lok Sabha.
Linking the alleged failure of the “Make in India” initiative to the presence of Chinese troops on Indian soil, Leader of the Opposition, Gandhi said, “Our Chief of Army Staff has said that the Chinese are inside our territory. This is a fact. The reason China is sitting inside this country is because ‘Make in India’ has failed. India is refusing to produce, and I am worried that India is going to give up this revolution to the Chinese once again.”
Gandhi also raised serious allegations of voter list additions in the Maharashtra Assembly elections, pointing to an inexplicable surge in the voter roll for the Maharashtra elections.
He said between the Lok Sabha election and the Vidhan Sabha election, the voting population of Himachal Pradesh was added to the voter roll of Maharashtra, “meaning the entire population of Himachal Pradesh was added to voter rolls of Maharashtra. Almost 70 lakh new voters suddenly arrived between Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections.”
Taking a dig at the Modi government’s diplomatic priorities, he remarked, “We would not send our Foreign Minister to the U.S. to get our Prime Minister invited to the US President’s ‘coronation.’”
His comment was met with strong objections from the treasury benches, with Rijiju vehemently rejecting the allegations, “The Leader of Opposition cannot make such a serious and unsubstantial statement. This is about the relation between two countries... and he is making an unverified statement about the invitation of the Prime Minister of our country.”
Minister of External Affairs, in a message on X, reacted strongly and said, “Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi deliberately spoke a falsehood about my visit to the US in December 2024. I went to meet the Secretary of State and NSA of the Biden Administration. Also to chair a gathering of our Consuls General. During my stay, the incoming NSA-designate met with me.”
Jaishankar further added, “At no stage was an invitation in respect of the PM discussed. It is common knowledge that our PM does not attend such events. In fact, India is generally represented by Special Envoys.”
Jaishankar accused the Congress leader of hurting the nation’s image abroad with such comments. “Rahul Gandhi’s lies may be intended politically. But they damage the nation abroad,” the Minister said.
As Rahul was speaking, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju stood up, objecting to the allegation and retorted along with other members of the parliament, “How can you say this... you are speaking lies.” Rijiju later met Speaker Om Birla, demanding that Gandhi provide evidence to substantiate his claims. Birla, too, reprimanded the Congress leader, stating, “You must present proof of what you are saying.”
Opening his remarks on a conciliatory note, Gandhi acknowledged that both the Congress-led UPA and the BJP-led NDA had struggled to resolve India’s employment crisis.
“Now, even though we have grown (and) grown fast... a universal problem we have faced is that we have not been able to tackle unemployment. Neither the UPA nor today’s NDA government has given a clear-cut answer to the youth of this country about employment,” he admitted.
He went on to critique the government’s flagship manufacturing push, stating, “The share of manufacturing fell from 15.3 percent in 2014 to 12.6 percent today. This is the lowest in 60 years. I am not blaming the Prime Minister... it would not be fair to say he did not try. ‘Make in India’ was a good idea... but PM Modi failed.”
Gandhi warned that India’s dependence on Chinese-manufactured components could cripple the nation in a future military conflict.
“If and when we fight a war with China, we will be fighting with Chinese electric motors, Chinese batteries, and Chinese optics. We will be buying Chinese motors, Chinese optics, and Chinese batteries,” he said, amid protests from BJP MPs.
He further accused the government of neglecting the need for a robust industrial base, stating, “India has to focus completely on production; social tension is on the rise in India. We have, as a country, failed in organising production and handed it over to the Chinese.”
Rahul Gandhi also spoke about India’s relationship with the United States, emphasising the need to strengthen strategic cooperation to boost domestic manufacturing.
“We have a strategic partner called the United States. The partnership should focus on how India and the U.S. can work together to take advantage of this revolution. India is as important as the U.S. for the simple reason that they cannot build an industrial system without us. The Americans simply cannot do what India can do because their cost structure is much more expensive than ours. We can build things that the Americans would never imagine,” he argued.
Caste Census and Social Equity
Gandhi also reiterated the Congress party’s demand for a caste census, arguing that it was crucial to addressing social and economic inequalities.
“Almost 90% of the population in Telangana is either Dalit, Adivasi, backward or minority, and I am convinced that is the story across the country. The OBC population of the country is not less than 50%. If we look at the largest corporates in this country, none of them are owned by OBCs, Dalits, or tribals. Central to any new development paradigm is the architecture of a new paradigm, and that architecture of the new paradigm can only be built once the caste census is placed on the table,” he stated.
He also called out the representation of marginalised communities within the ruling party, adding, “There are OBC, Dalit, and Adivasi MPs in the BJP. Remember, OBCs have 50% of the population, and you have absolutely no power. I know that you’re sitting there, and you cannot even open your mouth. That is the truth of the country.”
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor later weighed in on Gandhi’s speech, calling it a moment for reflection. “He specifically talked about the kinds of challenges that India needs to rise to if we want to become a more developed nation. He talked about the importance of production and the importance of participation of all sections of society, and he raised serious questions about the fairness and integrity of the electoral process. It was a totally different approach than many were expecting. I think the arguments he made deserve further reflection and response from the government,” Tharoor said.