Rahul targets 'chowkidar' PM, questions his silence on Rafale, Mallya
Jaipur, Sep 20 : Sharpening his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a variety of stinging barbs, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday questioned Modi's silence on Rafale fighter jet deal scam, the flight of businessmen facing money-laundering charges and demonetisation fiasco.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi calls himself the country's watchman. But the Indian masses have started saying, 'gali gali mein shore hai, desh ka chawkidaar chor hai (there is noise in lanes that the watchman is a thief)," said Gandhi in Dungarpur while addressing a rally.
"I want this 'chowkidaar' to answer why the Rafale aircraft price went up over three times from the one contracted during the UPA's tenure; why Anil Ambani was taken to France to sign Rafale contract and why this chowkidar was silent when Vijay Mallya ran away from India with Rs 9,000 crore after meeting Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley," Gandhi said.
He said the Prime Minister spoke of black money, brought in demonetisation and forced the entire country to stand in queues.
"Farmers, workers and labourers were seen standing in huge queues outside banks. But did you see any person in suits, or Lalit Modi or Vijay Mallya or Ambani standing in queues? It was only the poor who sweated outside the banks in queues," he said.
Even (Finance Minister) Jaitley confirmed that Mallya had met him before going to London. In such cases when a constable allows a thief to run, we put him also behind bars. Now, the Finance Minister helped a thief who ran away with Rs 9,000 crore. Why is Prime Minister Narendra Modi silent? he questioned.
Rahul Gandhi also questioned if any of the citizens in India got Rs 15 lakh deposited in their account which the PM had promised.
He said that Congress would not make "fake" promises. "We shall never make promise of transferring Rs 15 lakh, but we promise that we shall make cent per cent efforts to promote Rajasthan," he added.
"We shall make an endeavour to listen to your 'Mann ki baat', instead of sharing our 'Mann ki Baat' which our PM does," he said.
Calling 'Make in India campaign a failed show, he said the Prime Minister promised to bring in new jobs. "However, you keep searching for Make in India label in your shirts, trousers, shoes and phones and only get to read Made in China."
When you see Narendra Modi smiling in a poster, and watch (Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje) smiling on TV, you should know that poster and ad in TV is being made from your money. Crores of public funds are being used to take out Gaurav yatras".
He declared that "Once Congress forms government, we will ensure that banks give loans to small traders, small and medium entrepreneurs and farmers so that no one has to fry pakoras", he said.
"We shall convert 'gabbar singh tax' into GST to ensure that small traders don't suffer," he said, adding that GST has been introduced to please a few industrialists without giving any thought for small traders.
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Stalin accuses Centre of trying to use women's quota as 'weapon,' slams EPS over delimitation
Chennai (PTI): Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has strongly criticised the Centre over the women's reservation and accused it of trying to use it as a "weapon" to tackle the opposition before taking up the delimitation exercise based on population.
"The Union government is not concerned about implementing reservations for women. If their concerns were genuine, they could have done it right away. Rather than doing that, the BJP-led Centre is thinking of using it as a weapon to tackle opposition and take up the delimitation exercise based on population," he told PTI in an interview.
"Hence, the women's reservation must be implemented immediately without showing delimitation as a reason," the DMK president added.
Expressing apprehensions on the proposed delimitation exercise, the CM said it was the DMK that raised the first voice asserting the rights of the state after realising that Tamil Nadu would be affected by the proposed exercise. He also attacked his rival and AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami over the delimitation issue.
Recalling efforts made by the DMK to raise the issue of population-based delimitation, he said an all-party meeting and a meeting of CMs under the auspices of the Joint Action Committee seeking fair delimitation were convened. It sought to freeze delimitation for 25 years and stick to it based on the 1971 Census population.
"We urged the union government that states which successfully implemented population control programmes must not be punished," he added.
The party came up with "Tamil Nadu poradum, Tamil Nadu vellum" (Tamil Nadu will struggle, Tamil Nadu will win) and this is DMK's stand, he said.
"However, Palaniswami, who is seeking votes for the entry of the BJP through the backdoor, has till date been mute over delimitation, and this is a betrayal of the people of Tamil Nadu."
