NEW DELHI, May 11: The former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Saturday formally accepted the invitation to a public debate with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Lok Sabha polls. The invitation was extended by former Supreme Court judge Madan B Lokur, former High Court Chief Justice AP Shah, and senior journalist N Ram.
The trio wrote a letter on May 9 inviting Mr Modi and Mr Rahul Gandhi for a public debate on key issues of the 2024 elections. The letter mentioned the allegations and counter allegations levelled by each side and said “We believe that citizens would hugely benefit by hearing directly from our political leaders through a public debate on a non-partisan and non-commercial platform.”
A day later, Rahul Gandhi wrote back his acceptance of the debate invite and said either he himself or Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge would be pleased to participate. “I have discussed your invitation with the Congress President, Mallikarjun Kharge. We agree that such a debate will help people understand our respective vision and enable them to make an informed choice. It is also critical to put to rest any unsubstantiated allegations attributed to our respective parties.”
“As the principal parties fighting the election, the public deserved to hear from their leaders directly. Accordingly, either myself or the Congress President would be pleased to participate in such a debate,” he added. Rahul Gandhi said the details and format of the debate can be discussed “if and when the Prime Minister agrees to participate.”
“Please let us know if and when the Prime Minister agrees to participate, following which we can discuss the details and format of the debate,” Mr Gandhi said adding that he looks forward to participating in a productive and historic debate.
(Manas Dasgupta)