On the third and last day of his Gujarat visit, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi today attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi over “failed” demonetisation drive that “hit the country’s financial health badly”.
Addressing a rally in Rajkot, Rahul mimicked Modi and accused him of providing a safe window to blackmoney hoarders to convert their illicit money into white.
He also blasted the government over its flagship programme of Make in India which was launched in 2014 with an objective to give a push to the manufacturing sector. Rahul said that only 15 people have benefited with government’s “Make in India” initiative.
“Make in India has failed… this will not work. Modiji talks about Start Up India, Swachh Bharat but he never talks about employment opportunities,” Rahul, who also offered prayers at the famous Chotila Temple in Surendranagar district, said.
The Congress leader further attacked the BJP government by referring to a hashtag #VikasPagalHoGaya, which is trending on micro-blooging site Twitter for last few days. This hashtag targets the government over skyrocketing prices of petrol and diesel.
Two days back, he had started his campaign in the state, where the Assembly polls are due later this year, by paying a visit to the famous Dwarkadhish Temple in Saurashtra. During these three days, Rahul visited several temples. A senior state Congress leader said that Rahul’s visit to various temples during the campaign was aimed at countering the BJP's ‘hardline Hindutva stand’.
Today, Rahul started his tour from Rajkot and came to Chotila, the first stop of his campaign tour and began the steep climb immediately. He climbed around 1,000 steps in about 15 minutes without taking any break. After he offered prayers, the priests apprised him of the importance of the religious place. Later, the Congress leader came out of the temple and climbed down the steps in another 15 minutes, greeting devotees on his way back.
Gujarat Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi alleged that the party was deliberately projected as anti-Hindu by the BJP and the RSS.
Yesterday, Rahul had attended a garba event organised by MLA Indranil Rajyaguru in Rajkot and performed the 'aarti' of goddess Durga at the venue during night.
During his stay here, Rahul had made several attacks on the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the issues of GST, note ban and farm polices during his public addresses. He had also invoked Sardar Patel's legacy to woo the Patel community ahead of the crucial state polls. Rahul had also expressed confidence about his party winning the Assembly elections, claiming that there was a strong undercurrent in favour of the Congress in Gujarat.
