Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Saturday accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of “betraying citizens” by failing to deliver on his promises to “create two crore jobs every year and deposit Rs 15 lakh in their bank accounts”. Gandhi made the statement while addressing a rally in poll-bound Madhya Pradesh’s Sagar city, PTI reported.
The Congress president also addressed rallies in Damoh and Tikamgarh. Assembly elections will be held on November 28 in the state.
While campaign for the 2014 elections, Modi had promised that his government would ensure black money deposited abroad is returned to the country, and that Rs 15 lakh would be deposited in every citizen’s bank account.
Gandhi said Modi’s policies have only benefited his favoured few. “Modi said he would become the ‘chowkidar’ [security guard), but he did not specify whose ‘chowkidar’ he would be,” Gandhi said. “He became the chowkidar of Anil Ambani, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi and Vijay Mallya.”
The Congress leader said Modi’s fear of losing the 2019 general elections has led to the prime minister feeling “hatred” against the Congress. “He [Modi] speaks with hatred about me and my family, but [Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan] Shivraj uses decent language,” Gandhi said. “Modi does not know how to speak decently, but Rahul Gandhi will always maintain decency while speaking. Though Chouhan has indulged in corruption, whenever he says anything against us, he speaks with decency.”
Gandhi said Chauhan is contesting the election to lose. The Congress leader said many youth were unemployed because they could not pay those involved in the Vyapam scam. He alleged that Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh members and Chouhan’s family had benefited from the scam.
The Central Bureau of Investigation is looking into alleged irregularities in various entrance and recruitment exams conducted by the Madhya Pradesh Professional Examination Board – also known as the Vyavsayik Pariksha Mandal, or Vyapam.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, however, refuted the allegations linking Chauhan to the Vyapam scam. “Rahul’s statement on Vyapam is ridiculous,” BJP spokesperson Sarvesh Tiwari said. “The matter came up in 2013, and even after that, the BJP won convincingly. It shows that the [Gandhi’s] allegations have no substance and made out for political purposes.”
Earlier on Saturday, Modi criticised the Congress for dragging his mother into the election campaign and said it did so because the party does not have the courage to confront him. The prime minister was responding to Congress leader Raj Babbar, who compared the decline in the value of the rupee to the age of Modi’s mother at a rally on Thursday.
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