Cong sees nationalism in devotion to family: Modi

■ Votebank politics badly hit state, says PM

Akola/Jalna, Oct. 16: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the Congress sees nationalism in “devotion to a family”, and claimed the Opposition party is taking its “last breath”.

Addressing rallies in Akola and Jalna districts for the next week’s Maharashtra polls, Mr Modi said the Congress now is not the same party that fought for Independence.

“The (Congress) party is taking its last breath. It sees ‘rashtra bhakti’ (nationalism) in 'parivar bhakti' (devotion to a family),” he said without taking any names.

Mr Modi said he read that the Congress will take a class for the party workers on nationalism. “I don't know whether to laugh or cry. This proves that today's Congress is not the one which fought for freedom,” he said.

Maharashtra was the land of the brave and had leaders who gave direction to the country, he noted. “Sentiments of nationalism and patriotism are high in Maharashtra. Unfortunately, the Congress and NCP leaders have forgotten these values,” he said.

In national security, the country has to speak in one voice. But, these people have a habit of indulging in politics on all issues, he charged.

He dubbed the CongressNCP alliance as a “bhrashtwadi yuti” (corrupt coalition), which took Maharashtra backwards by a decade.

The “vote bank politics” adversely affected the state. There used to be bomb blasts in trains, buses, buildings frequently during the CongressNCP rule, he said.

“At one time, there were regular incidents of terrorism and hatred in Maharashtra. The culprits got away, and settled in different countries. India wants to ask the people who were in power then, how did all of this happen? How did they escape,” he said, slamming the Congress-NCP combine.

Mr Modi claimed that when young leaders in the Congress say the government’s decision of abrogating Article 370 is in the country's interest, they are sidelined in the party. Many mass base leaders have quit the Congress and NCP because of the “arrogance” of certain leaders, and those still there, will vote for the BJPled alliance next week, he said.

While BJP’s priority is the people’s inte-rest, the Congress and NCP's intentions and dedication are not genuine, he said.

Mr Modi said that Marathwada gave three chief ministers to the state, but still the region is backward in terms of development.