Congress president Rahul Gandhi addressed a rally in Bidar as part of the party’s campaign for the 12 May elections in Karnataka.
Taking the fight straight to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gandhi alleged that the PM “resorts to personal attacks and character assassination”.
“He can say anything against me. I don’t care. He is the Prime Minister of India. I will never make any personal attack on him because I am a citizen of India,” he said.
“But I can ask questions. Questions PM Modi doesn’t answer,” added Gandhi.
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Addressing a gathering of Congress supporters in Aurad, a panchayat town in Bidar district, the 47-year-old Congress chief lambasted the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for speaking about corruption even though they fielded BS Yeddyurappa as their CM candidate.
Hitting at the Reddy brothers, two of whom are contesting from the BJP, Gandhi accused PM Modi of trying to “unleash the ‘Gabbar Singh gang’ upon Karnataka”.
“PM Modi ironically speaks of anti-corruption from a stage he shares with Yeddyurappa,” he said at the rally on Thursday.
“While the poor people of the country stood in queues and went through troubles post demonetisation, the likes of Chhota Modi looted people’s money and escaped,” said Gandhi referring to the Nirav Modi scam adding that the PM never speaks on the issue.
“He answers no questions on the scams perpetrated by his friends,” he said while hitting out at the BJP.
He praised the people of Karnataka for working for their prosperity and claimed that Siddaramaiah government fulfilled “more than 90 per cent of the promises”.
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“This election is a contest between two ideologies. On one hand, there’s Congress with its ideology of unity, compassion and an inclusive Karnataka while on the other, we have BJP-RSS with its ideology of hatred and division,” said Gandhi.
Gandhi’s Jana Aashirwada Yatre rally was held on the same day when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was speaking at Kalaburgi 117 kms away.