Lucknow, March 13 Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Friday that if Jawaharlal Nehru had been alive, Kanshi Ram would have been made Chief Minister by the Congress.
Nehru, India's first Prime Minister, died in 1964, while Kanshi Ram emerged on the political scene with the founding of BAMCEF, which championed the cause of backward classes, in 1978, and later, the formation of the Bahujan Samaj Party in 1984.
In his tribute to the Dalit icon, Gandhi said that Mahatma Gandhi, Babasaheb Bhimrao Ambedkar, and Kanshi Ram never compromised on their principles.
He was speaking at the Samvidhan Sammelan held in Lucknow ahead of Kanshi Ram's birth anniversary.
"The path we were on should have been pursued at a faster pace. There have been shortcomings on the part of the Congress party," the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.
He said that if the Congress had done its job, Kanshi Ram "would not have been successful."
He added, "If Jawaharlal Nehru were alive, then Kanshi Ram would have been a Chief Minister from the Congress."
Gandhi said that in politics, there are two types of people – one wants progress for all, while the other seeks only personal enrichment.
"Gandhi (Mahatma) went to jail for 10-15 years, but he did not compromise. Babasaheb Ambedkar gave his life, but did not compromise. Did Kanshi Ram ji compromise? The question does not arise. He could not have done it," Gandhi said.
Referring to his speech in Parliament on Thursday, he said, "Yesterday in the Parliament, I uttered the word 'Epstein', and the Speaker said no, no...I said that the matter pertains to energy security. The issue is that people are not getting LPG cylinders."
Gandhi alleged that India's energy security has been "compromised" under the Narendra Modi-led dispensation.
"If today, the US tells us to buy oil and gas from Russia, from Iran, Iraq or any other country, it means that our energy security has been compromised," he said.
He said that the central government "bartered" with the US the country's right to determine its relationships with different oil suppliers.
He said that the war between the US-Israel combine and Iran is going to have far-reaching consequences.
In Parliament, Gandhi sought to link the issue of India's energy security with the US Department of Justice's disclosures.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla asked Gandhi to speak on the notice he was given and not deviate.