Rahul Gandhi addressed the press today for the first time as Congress President. Speaking in Ahmedabad on the last day of campaigning for the Gujarat Assembly Elections, Gandhi slammed the BJP, questioning the party's contribution in its 22 years rule in the state.
On the BJP linking his temple visits to the elections, Gandhi said he visits temples whenever he has the chance to.
"Jahan mauka milta hai vahan mandir jaata hoon, Kedarnath bhi gaya tha, vo kya Gujarat mein hai." (Wherever I get a chance, I visit temples. I visited Kedarnath also. Is it located in Gujarat?)
"Whenever I went to a temple I just prayed for a 'Sunehra Bhavishya' (prosperous future) for the people of Gujarat, a better development here. Is it wrong to go to a temple?, " he added.
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Slamming the BJP government, the Congress President said the party's focus on development was only one-sided.
"In last 22 years Modi Ji and Rupani ji have initiated only one-sided development here, the one only for 5-10 people. Not everyone has been given their rights...People of Gujarat are very intelligent, they can see that PM Modi is not talking about corruption or farmers in his rallies. There is a massive undercurrent, I am actually little surprised,I had expected BJP to fight with more strength," he said.
On Mani Shankar Aiyar's 'neech' remark on PM Modi, which cost him his primary membership in the Congress party, Gandhi said he will 'not tolerate such things.'
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"I have made it clear I will not tolerate such things, Modi ji is after all the Prime Minister of India, though what all Modi ji said about Dr.Manmohan Singh is also not acceptable, "he said.
A huge row broke out on Monday over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's insinuation that former PM Manmohan Singh was colluding with Pakistan in the Gujarat polls with the former premier saying he was setting a "dangerous precedent" and asked he apologise to the nation.
Modi had claimed that some Pakistani officials and Manmohan Singh met at Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's house over dinner on December 6. This was a day before Aiyar's "neech" jibe against Modi that led to his suspension from the party. The former PM had asked Modi for dragging the political discourse to an "unacceptable low".
The high-decibel campaigning for the second and final phase of the Gujarat assembly elections will be concluded this evening.
During the last day of the campaigning, Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled from Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad to Dharoi Dam via sea plane.
Meanwhile, Congress president designate Rahul Gandhi visited Jagannath Temple at Ahmedabad to offer his prayers.
The second phase of the Gujarat polls will be held on December 14 in 93 assembly constituencies.
The first phase of polls for 89 seats took place on December 9 and counting of votes will be done on December 18.
The crucial elections are being seen as prestige battle for BJP, which has been ruling the state for last 22 years, while it is a litmus test for the Congress.
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(Inputs from agencies)
