Modi mocks Congress over party president election

In his campaign blitzkrieg in poll-bound Gujarat, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today accused the Congress of seeking to divide the people on caste and religious lines.

He also hit out at the Congress over the upcoming election of its president, alleging that the opposition party has a history of rigging (organisational) elections.

If one doesn’t have democracy in his home (party), how can the person practice it in the country, he wondered and said the outcome of the election to the top post in the Congress is a foregone conclusion.

He lashed out at the Congress over its criticism of the government’s ambitious bullet train project, saying if the opposition party has a problem with it, it could roam around on bullock carts.

“The people of Gujarat know what the Congress is up to.

It changes colour time and again, creates a wall between brothers, it wants to make urban areas fight with rural areas of the country, illiterate fight with literates and poor fight with the rich,” he said.

Modi said the party made “one caste fight with the other, one religion fight with another”.

“They keep you busy in fighting with each other. You may die, but the Congress will eat ‘malai’ (cream),” he said, launching a broadside against the opposition party apparently for having an alliance with caste leaders such as Hardik Patel, Jignesh Mevani and Alpesh Thakor ahead of the state polls.

“But, they do not understand that all these diseases were cured in Gujarat of the day when the BJP came to power in the state, and the state is firmly on the path of development,” the prime minister asserted.

“They (Congress) have a pain that Gujarat is progressing rapidly. When I was the chief minister, no day passed when they had not taken a step to harm Gujarat,” he said.

Later, at a rally in Surendranagar district, he hit out at the Congress over the upcoming election of its president.

“An election is going on in the Congress party for its president. What the result will be everybody knows,” he said.

To this, the crowd replied that Rahul Gandhi would become the Congress president.

“We have a Gujarati saying which means that if there is water in a well then only it can come in a bucket. If you do not have democracy in your home (party) how can you practice it in the country,” Modi said.

He went on to allege that this has been a practice with the Congress party.

“Sardar Patel got more votes than Jawaharlal Nehru when the Congress party had (then) met to decide who will be the prime minister of the country. But that the election was rigged and Nehru won,” he alleged.

Claiming the same thing happened with Morarji Desai, he said, “They have the history of rigging elections.”

The Congress today hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for mocking its presidential election and, raising the issue of “internal democracy” in the BJP, asked him when he would answer questions posed by the leaders of his own party.

Congress communications incharge Randeep Surjewala raked up the names of former BJP top guns such as L K Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sanjay Joshi, Keshubhai Patel and Anandiben Patel, alleging they were “victims” of Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah’s “internal democracy”.

“Dear PM, your love for ‘Shahzad’, ‘Shah-zada’ and ‘Shaurya’ is now well known, but ‘Nation wants to know’ when will you reply to the questions raised by senior BJP leaders, ‘Shourie’ (Arun), Sinha (Yashwant) and Sinha (Shatrughan),” he posted on Twitter.

Surjewala further tweeted, “Blinded by rage and enmity, what unimaginable depths would you fall to?”

He also referred to senior BJP leaders such as Advani and Joshi in another tweet.

“Modiji, do tell Gujarat and country about the victims of yours and Amit Shah s ‘internal democracy’ in BJP, namelylal Krishna Advani, Keshubhai Patel, Hiren Pandya, Kanshiram Rana, Anandiben Patel, Murli Manohar Joshi, Sanjay Joshi, who were compulsorily lost in pages of history,” he said.

Earlier, while addressing a poll rally in Gujarat, Modi had mocked the Congress over the upcoming election of its pres- ident, alleging the party had a history of rigging organisational polls. The charge was raised after a Congress leader from Maharashtra, Shehzad Poonawala, alleged that the Congress organisational polls were “rigged” and state party delegates were not elected.

Modi said at the rally the outcome of the election to the top post in the Congress was a foregone conclusion.

“If you do not have democracy in your home (party) how can you practise it in the country,” Modi asked.