Punjab Flood: Politics over Rahul Gandhi's picture on relief packages; what BJP said? what was Cong's response?
Relief material was distributed in Punjab amid the flood disaster. Rahul Gandhi's pictures and big posters of Congress leaders were put on relief packages. Now the BJP has launched a scathing attack on the Congress, calling it the politics of "opportunity in disaster".
BJP national spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari shared a video on the social media platform X in which pictures of Rahul Gandhi's old visit and Congress flags and posters can be clearly seen on trucks loaded with relief material.
Bhandari raised the question, "If the purpose of the Congress is really to provide relief, then why is Rahul Gandhi's picture on every packet? This is not relief, but a publicity campaign."
Well-planned political effort
Calling it a well-planned political effort, he said that the priority of the Congress is not to help the public, but to brand its leaders.
BJP leaders also reminded that during the 2013 Uttarakhand floods, the Congress had tried to promote the Gandhi family with relief material. At that time, about 500 trucks carrying relief material were stranded on the way for several days, out of which 96 trucks were sent by the Congress high command. The drivers of the trucks had then told that they neither got fuel nor guidance, and the relief material could not reach the affected areas.
What Congress said?
At present, there has been no official response from the Congress on this controversy, but some local leaders of the party say that this relief material has been collected with the contribution of Congress workers and supporters, and putting stickers on it was done only for the purpose of “expressing gratitude and inspiring”.
Is it ethical to take political advantage in humanitarian crises?
According to political analysts, it is common for any political party to send relief material, but when it is accompanied by pictures of leaders and party propaganda, questions are bound to arise. This case once again fuels the debate whether it is ethical to take political advantage in humanitarian crises?