*Hon’ble Congress President Shri Mallikarjun Kharge Ji’s message to the nation on 76th Republic Day | 26th January 2025* My dear fellow citizens, On behalf of the Indian National Congress, I extend my warm Republic Day wishes to each one of you. This year, we complete 75 years of adopting of the conscience keeper and soul of the Indian Republic – the Constitution of India. We bow in reverence to Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Babasaheb Dr B R Ambedkar, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, Dr Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Azad, Sarojini Naidu and many others who tirelessly contributed to the shaping of our great republic. We venerate each and every member of the Constituent Assembly who with their wisdom and ingenuity created a remarkable document which represents the will of our diverse people. We salute every soldier of our Armed Forces; Paramilitary Forces and the security establishment who have made exemplary sacrifices in upholding the integrity and sovereignty of this nation. We are also thankful to our scientists and teachers whose contributions to nation building are unparalleled and who have ensured that our nation is a knowledge and technical powerhouse today. We are also indebted to our Annadata – our hardworking Farmers who have put food on our table. We express our gratitude to crores of daily wage workers, labourers, shramiks, gig workers, for they are the hands that are building India – brick by brick. We would also like to thank all the artists, writers, and sportspeople who have contributed so much to protecting and building the vibrant cultural diversity of our country. As we celebrate this momentous occasion, it is also a time to reflect upon how the country is witnessing constant attacks on our Constitution. The ruling party has unleashed a continuous degradation of our institutions, built carefully over decades. Political interference in autonomous institutions has become a norm. Exercising control over their independence is being seen as a virtue of power. Federalism is being trampled on a daily basis, and the rights of Opposition governed states are being curtailed. The functioning of Parliament has seen tremendous backsliding due to the tyrannical tendency of the ruling government. Universities and self-governing institutions are witnessing constant intrusion. A large part of the media has been converted as a propaganda tool for the ruling party. Strangulating dissent by witch-hunting Opposition leaders has become the only policy of those in power. In the past decade, a vicious, hateful agenda immersed in religious fundamentalism has sought to divide our society. Minorities are being targeted, and those who are secular are being tarnished by the paint of Goebbelsian propaganda. The weaker sections – SCs, STs, OBCs, poor and minorities are being treated as second class citizens. Atrocities and unheard-of violence against them have become a regular occurrence. Manipur has been burning for 21 months, but there is no accountability at the topmost echelons of power. Economic inequality has widened to frightening proportions. Crony billionaire friends are being handed over the country’s precious resources. Any scandal that comes to fore, is sought to be crushed by the hammer of labelling the whistleblowers as ‘anti-national’. The ruling party practices pseudo-nationalism, for they make our disadvantaged youth carry the flag of ‘nationalism’ and ‘religious supremacy’ but do nothing to get them employment. The nation is living in an era of economic turmoil. Taxes have guzzled every single paisa of hard-earned money from the poor and the middle classes. The living standards of our populace have hardly increased because flawed economic policies have perished their savings. Those handful of elites who can afford a brighter future are leaving India’s citizenship. When the failures of the Union government are pointed out, they either indulge in whataboutery or indulge in diversionary tactics, often invoking the past, but never the present. There is an inherent tendency to impose ‘One Nation, One Party’ on 140 crore different people, who believe in ‘Unity in Diversity’. Every sacred tenant of the Constitution is being shredded into pieces by an authoritarian regime. Therefore, my dear fellow citizens, It is high time we preserve and protect the ideas and ideals of our Constitution – JUSTICE, LIBERTY, EQUALITY and FRATERNITY. We uphold the values espoused by our founders. Be ready to make every sacrifice to protect the Constitution. This will be the true tribute to our ancestors. Once again, I wish you a very Happy Republic Day. Jai Bapu, Jai Bheem, Jai Samvidhaan. Jai Hind.