00:00At the India Today Bharat Agriculture Conference, Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a sharp
00:06attack on the opposition, accusing some leaders of treating democratic institutions and the
00:11constitution as their personal property. Prime Minister Modi also referred to an instance
00:16from his tenure as Gujarat Chief Minister, reviving allegations of political interference
00:21by the then-Congress government in an economic ranking that had placed Gujarat right at the top.
00:28The Congress has hit back. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Wadra has accused the BJP of undermining
00:33the very institutions it claims to defend. Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav too has joined
00:39that attack. The big showdown is over. Who is protecting the constitution and who is politicizing
00:47it? I'll be taking that debate up in just a few minutes. But first up, take a look at this
00:51report.
01:12A sharp attack appointed political message. Prime Minister Narendra Modi took aim at the opposition,
01:19accusing some leaders of believing that the constitution and democratic institutions belong to them. At India,
01:27today's Bharat Agriculture Conference 2026, Prime Minister Modi said that even after losing power,
01:34some leaders remain intoxicated by it.
01:37Netherlands could visit in the province. There are also lots of people who remain in their
01:47kingdom. They think that the country's kingdom, the country's kingdom, they are in their kingdom.
02:10And then, Prime Minister turned the clock back to his Gujarat days.
02:15Modi recalled how Gujarat had topped an economic performance ranking during his tenure as Chief
02:21Minister.
02:21He said the assessment was based on research by leading economists and conducted by an
02:27organization named after a former Prime Minister.
02:30Without naming the organization, Prime Minister alleged that then-Congress-led government at
02:35the centre tried to prevent Gujarat from retaining its top position by putting pressure on researchers.
03:04And then, I was the head of Gujarat, and I was the head of Gujarat's head of Gujarat.
03:12And then, I was the head of Gujarat, and I was the head of Gujarat.
03:50The remarks bring back allegations made by former economist Vivek Debroy in an India Today interview
03:57in 2015.
03:59Debroy had alleged political interference at Sonia Gandhi's insistence.
04:03He recalled a 2004 study that ranked Gujarat number one in economic freedom and claimed
04:09that after the 2005 Gujarat municipal elections, publications of the Rajiv Gandhi Institution
04:16for contemporary studies were subjected to political vetting.
04:21Debroy had alleged that the directive was signed by Sonia Gandhi.
04:26But the Congress is not letting the attack pass unanswered.
04:29Priyanka Gandhi-Wadra hit back at Modi's constitution in their pocket jibe, accusing the BJP of silencing
04:37dissent and weakening democratic institutions.
04:41We are fighting for the constitution.
04:43We are fighting for the values of the constitution.
04:47And we are fighting because all the institutions in our country, which uphold the constitution
04:53and their values, are being systematically destroyed by the BJP.
04:58Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav also hit out at Prime Minister Modi, saying people
05:04who insulted Baba Sahib Ambedkar were talking about the constitution now.
05:09Baba Sahib Bheemra Amirajji was broken.
05:14And the first of all, we do the assault on our hands.
05:17Because Baba Sahib Bheemra Amirajji was on the hands of Samhidhani.
05:21It was 151.
05:23Now it was 191.
05:25We are fighting for the constitution.
05:29With battle over constitutional values, the political confrontation has taken a familiar
05:34turn.
05:34The BJP and the opposition are now trading charges over who truly stands for democracy, dissent
05:41and the constitution.
05:42Bureau Report, India Today.
05:44Bureau Report, India Today.
