Modi not 'chowkidar' but 'bhagidar', launches 'jumla' strikes: Rahul
New Delhi, July 20 : Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the debate on no-confidence motion in Lok Sabha, accusing him of launching "jumla strikes", being a "bhagidaar and not chowkidar" and said he had been benefiting his "industralist friends" while ignoring the youth, farmers, Dalits and women.
After participating in the debate, Gandhi sprung a surprise by walking up to Modi and hugging him after accusing him of "acting out of anger which the whole country was experiencing."
Gandhi said Modi and BJP President Amit Shah act out of fear and cannot afford to lose power "because the moment they lose power, other processes will start against them" but asserted that opposition parties will defeat BJP in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
The Congress chief, who spoke for around 45 minutes, said he was very respectful to the BJP and its ideological patron for teaching him the meaning of Congress and being a Hindu and said while they could be angry and call him "Pappu" but he will remove this feeling from them and turn them towards the Congress.
He sought to tear into the BJP's poll plank of national security and said Modi had been "untruthful" on the Rafale fighter jet deal and had "betrayed the soldiers" by not raising the Doklam stand off with China during his visit for an informal summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Referring to TDP member Jayadev Galla, who spoke before him, Gandhi said his party was victim of a political weapon called "jumla strike".
"First a great sense of happiness, excitement, then a feeling of shock, then eight-hour long speech. The victims are farmers, youth, Dalits, tribals and women," he said.
Gandhi, whose speech was repeatedly interrupted by BJP members, said Galla had rightly noted that words of the Prime Minister should carry weight.
Throwing repeated barbs at Modi who sometimes smiled, the Congress leader said the Prime Minister had given people "jumlas" by promising Rs 15 lakh in account of people and generating two crore jobs every year.
He also targeted the government over demonetisation and said Congress wanted that there should be one GST rate and petroleum products should be covered in it.
He said Modi had called himself "chowkidar of the country" but he was silent when there was 16,000 time rise in the turnover of a company linked to Amit Shah's son.
Gandhi, who spoke forcefully but with ease, said India is not being able to protect its women for the first time in its history and its reputation was being besmirched.
"There are atrocities against Dalits, minorities and adivasis. People are being killed, beaten up, lynched, exploited, but PM doesn't speak a word. Their minister goes and garlands them (the convicts).
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Kerala polls: Vijayan, Revanth Reddy trade barbs as campaigning ends
Kannur (Kerala)/Hyderabad (PTI): A war of words between Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his Telangana counterpart Revanth Reddy turned acrimonious on Tuesday, the final day of campaigning for the April 9 Assembly polls.
The two leaders sparred on the virtual world as well, exchanging letters on their respective social media handles.
The escalation came after Vijayan, responding to Reddy's earlier remarks, used Malayalam expressions considered nearly derogatory, signalling strong disapproval of the Telangana CM's comments.
Reddy, campaigning for the UDF in Kollam district, hit back swiftly, likening Vijayan to PM Narendra Modi.
He said he would take any personal remarks from the senior leader as a "blessing" considering his age, but objected to what he described as insults directed at the people of Kerala. "But you cannot abuse our Kerala people," he said, hours before campaigning drew to a close.
The controversy began after Reddy had said "nee po mone Vijaya" by invoking a famous dialogue from superstar Mohanlal's blockbuster movie "Narasimham" while referring to Vijayan on April 1 during a UDF campaign roadshow in Nemom constituency.
Earlier in the day, while reacting to Reddy's earlier remarks, Vijayan said a CM must maintain basic standards of conduct and questioned whether such dignity was being followed.
In his response to a query, Vijayan used Malayalam words that were seen as nearly derogatory for Reddy, signalling his strong disapproval of the remarks made against him.
Sharply reacting to the CM's objectionable remarks, Congress leader V D Satheesan said Vijayan appeared to have "completely lost composure" and warned that any further deterioration in his conduct would have brought "greater embarrassment" to the state.
After the critical remarks during the press meet, Vijayan wrote on his 'X' handle that political differences are natural, but expressing strong disagreement through personally insulting remarks is an attitude that he rejects. Reddy's statements lacked factual backing.
In a detailed letter attached with the 'X' post addressing the Telangana CM, Vijayan said the experience of the people of Kerala was "vastly different" from what Reddy had portrayed.
He clarified that he did not intend to engage in a debate over the performance of the Telangana government, stating that it was for the people of Telangana and political parties there to assess their government.
Referring to Reddy's comments, Vijayan said the LDF government has been consistently publishing progress reports over the past 10 years on the implementation of its election promises, underlining its commitment to continuous accountability.
He also rejected the allegation of "selective appropriation" of Kerala's achievements, including its top ranking in the NITI Aayog SDG Index, and said such criticism was misplaced.
Dismissing claims of industrial stagnation, Vijayan said Kerala has made significant strides in the startup ecosystem and ease of doing business, adding that these achievements have been widely acknowledged.
He also alleged that key infrastructure projects in Kerala, including the Kochi Metro and Vizhinjam Port, faced delays under previous Congress-led governments at the Centre, while long-pending promises such as a railway coach factory remained unfulfilled.
Vijayan further accused the BJP-led Union government of discrimination against Kerala and said the state has been actively resisting what he described as "anti-federal and undemocratic" policies through legal and political means, including approaching the Supreme Court.
He also rejected Reddy's criticism that the LDF was not vocal enough against the BJP, asserting that Kerala has been at the forefront of defending constitutional values.
Concluding his letter, Vijayan reiterated the state government's commitment to building a "Nava Keralam" and moving forward as a model for others.
On April 1, while addressing party workers in Nemom, Reddy used the popular Malayalam film dialogue "Nee po mone Vijaya". He adapted it to target Vijayan, saying "Nee po mone Vijaya".
Reddy went further, claiming that Vijayan's "time is over" and that his "expiry date has passed".
Responding to these allegations, Vijayan had said that the Telangana CM was "misinformed" and accused him of "ridiculing" Kerala and its people while trying to hide the weaknesses of his own state.
In a later response, Reddy defended his remarks and said that many of the statistics cited by Vijayan were taken from the NITI Aayog SDG Index 2023 24, arguing that the data was already outdated.
Reddy in his letter questioned the veteran Marxist leader's claim that Kerala would become the first state to completely eradicate extreme poverty by late 2025 had been achieved. Further, he chooses to conduct himself respectfully and gracefully in his criticism of the Kerala government's performance, whereas Vijayan opted to use language of poor taste.
Reddy, in his letter on X, said that while he respects NITI Aayog's corruption rankings, he wants to know why the infamous gold smuggling case, linked to individuals connected to the CMO, remains unresolved, and why 4.5 kg of gold allegedly misappropriated from the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple has not been accounted for.
