Senior Congress leader T. Jagga Reddy addressing a press conference at Gandhi Bhavan in Hyderabad on Friday.
| Photo Credit: By Arrangement
Senior Congress leader T. Jagga Reddy launched a counterattack against BJP MP K. Lakshman, questioning the BJP veteran’s criticism of the Gandhi family and accusing the saffron party of attempting to distort India’s political history.
Responding to Mr. Lakshman’s recent remarks about the Gandhi family seeking ‘three MP seats’, Mr. Jagga Reddy said history and sacrifice cannot be erased. India attained independence 78 years ago. Lakshman is 69 years old. He should have asked his parents about sacrifices made by the Nehru-Gandhi family,” he said.
He argued that from the freedom movement to nation-building, the Nehru-Gandhi family played a defining role that the BJP cannot claim. “After becoming Prime Minister, Nehru thought about feeding every Indian. He created the FCI so that poor people would never starve,” he added.
“What role did Modi or Amit Shah play in early shaping of the nation?” he asked, accusing the BJP of winning elections through ‘bogus votes’ and challenged the party to an open debate on governance.
Mr. Jagga Reddy credited former Prime Ministers Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi for landmark reforms. “Indira Gandhi distributed surplus lands to the poor and brought banks to villages. Rajiv Gandhi laid the foundation for India’s IT revolution. Hi-Tech City itself is the result of Rajiv Gandhi’s technology vision,” he said, adding that BJP-ruled states lack comparable development.
The Congress leader also aimed at the BJP’s repeated attempts to claim national icons. “Sardar Patel was the Home Minister in Nehru’s cabinet. Now BJP claims Patel’s legacy. PV Narasimha Rao was made Prime Minister by Congress and not BRS or BJP,” he said.
Published – November 28, 2025 06:14 pm IST
