Freedom of expression does not mean that leaders should start using abusive words.

The reins of the country’s development are in the hands of the leaders. Due to the democratic governance system in the country, it is expected that the leaders will give a new direction to the country. We will present ideals in front of the country and society by our conduct and behavior. On the contrary, if the leaders themselves are not able to keep a check on their tongue, then the good of the country cannot be expected. Freedom of expression does not mean that leaders should indulge in foul language. What message will such unbridled leaders give to the party workers and office bearers to exercise restraint and discipline. Instead of self-discipline, the action of controlling the leaders through law through restrained language and conduct will be considered as showing a mirror to them. It should be expected that the leaders of the country will control their tongue after the punishment given to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for abusing him and his membership of the Parliament. The punishment given to Rahul Gandhi will prove to be a milestone in teaching the leaders a lesson to control their tongue. This will at least instill fear in the leaders of paying the price for making comments unbecoming of dignity in public.

This is not the first time that a national level leader has lost his membership of Parliament after being punished by the court. Earlier, many leaders including RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav, former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had lost their membership from the Assembly and Lok Sabha. Except Rahul, these leaders had to lose their membership after being sentenced to jail in criminal and other cases. On the contrary, Rahul had to lose his membership due to abusing a particular caste. Dozens of defamation and criminal cases are pending against politicians for using indecent language in various courts of the country. Among these, more than half a dozen cases are also registered against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Several cases are going on against Rahul Gandhi for commenting on RSS. Significantly, in the year 2019, Rahul Gandhi had unconditionally apologized in the Supreme Court for making remarks like Chowkidar Chor Hai to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Instead of learning from it, Rahul Gandhi did not stop speaking indecent language. Even outside the court, Rahul did not express regret for committing such indecency. Now Congress is making it a national issue. Congress is making it an issue in upcoming elections including Karnataka elections. From this it will be believed that instead of respecting the law, Congress is turning away from the real issues of the problems in the country by showing eyes and trying to get sympathy.

Even before Rahul, legal action has been taken against many leaders for making indecent remarks. Chandrashekhar Patel, the former district president of the Seva Dal of the Indore unit of the Congress, was arrested by the police for using abusive language against Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. Nagpur Police has registered an FIR against former Congress District Officer Sheikh Hussain for using indecent language against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Hussain had said derogatory words to PM Modi during the Congress protest over the Enforcement Directorate’s action against Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case. On similar charges, the Lucknow police arrested Manish Jagan Agarwal, associated with the social media cell of the Samajwadi Party. Kolkata Police arrested Congress leader Kaustubh Bagchi for allegedly outraging the dignity of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. Several defamation cases against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal are pending in the courts.

Being a district or state level leader, the legal action taken in these cases has not been the subject of discussion at the national level. The action taken against Rahul Gandhi because of the indirect surveyors of the Congress has echoed across the country. Enraged by Rahul Gandhi’s loss of Parliament membership, the Congress is making it an election issue by holding protests across the country. Since the punishment has been given by the court, Rahul and Congress could not hold BJP responsible for it, but made the issue of removal of membership due to punishment a big issue. Leaders of opposition parties are also supporting Rahul Gandhi on this issue. What is surprising is that the leaders of the Congress and other parties made no effort to refrain from making indecent remarks. Several cases of leaders of regional parties using abusive language against each other and against BJP leaders have come to the fore.

With the increase in the number of regional political parties in the country, the competition for power has crossed all the limits of law as well as morality. Most of the regional parties are dominated by the families of the leaders. That’s why the process of decline in politics continues due to the competition to get power. Congress may have fewer seats in the Lok Sabha than other parties, but among the opposition parties, Congress is the only party, which has power in three states and has a network of organization at the national level. Due to this, the responsibility of the Congress is more than that of other parties. Much of the responsibility rests with the Congress for setting standards of sober conduct and probity in public life. Criticizing the policies of the ruling party is the tradition and need of a healthy democracy. On the contrary, if politics is made dirty by making personal allegations, then the issues related to the common people will go to the margins. Due to this, a new type of squid political atmosphere will be created in the country. The country will have to pay the price of such an environment by lagging behind. It should be expected that the punishment given to Rahul and the loss of the post of MP will force the leaders of the country to think before speaking publicly.

– Yogendra Yogi