Srinagar, Mar 30: The former Union External Affairs Minister and senior Congress leader Salman Khurshid today called for collective effort by all the opposition parties in the country to fight against the “big challenge”.Speaking to reporters during a press conference here at Srinagar Party headquarters of the Congress party held on the issue of Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from the Parliament following his conviction in a defamation case, Khurshid said that Congress does not want to play the role of a “big brother” to any party.“We do not want to play the role of a big brother to anyone. A collective effort should be made, all should come together and all leaders should decide who will get what responsibility or rights,” Khurshid said. Click here to watch video“(Mallikarjun) Kharge called all the leaders and almost all of them came. Many such leaders who were not saying anything before have openly supported Rahul over this episode. So, we hope this will be taken forward soon and all of us will decide together,” the Congress veteran said.He said the opposition parties were of one mind over the need for unity and the Congress is hopeful that the efforts will fructify. “Everyone will see the ground reality and know how much one is worth. This can be discussed when all of us sit together … There is a unanimity … that all of us have to unite to fight this big challenge. We are hopeful there will be unity,” he added.“When Rahul’s yatra reached here, he was welcomed by other parties. That is what we want, we will welcome others, others will welcome us,” he said.“Rahul Gandhi and the Congress will not get scared. During the Bharat Jodo Yatra, we went directly to the people and heard their concerns – price rise, unemployment, social inequality, and the capture of institutions. We will continue to raise these issues of the people and continue to send our message directly to the people,” he said.The Congress leader said that the British used to punish Mahatma Gandhi, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Subhash Chandra Bose, Sardar Patel, Maulana Azad either with sedition or jail sentences. “The Congress eventually won against the British. Now, the Modi government is targeting Rahul Gandhi for exposing thieves and scamsters. The Congress will win again,” he said.
