Haveri (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday hit out at the BJP-led government at the Centre, accusing it of promoting privatisation of state-owned companies and reducing the number of government jobs in the country.

Addressing a public meeting here in Haveri district, he attacked the government on the issues of corruption, price rise and unemployment.

Government companies were being privatised one by one, and government jobs were being reduced, alleged Gandhi, who was on a visit to the state to campaign for the party ahead of the May 10 Assembly polls.

"When Narendra Modi became Prime Minister, he said two crore youth would be given jobs every year. (But) unemployment is highest today in 40 years," he said.

In the healthcare and education sectors, the government was supposed to build institutions but instead they were all being privatised, Gandhi said.

"We don't want such a Hindustan, We don't want an unemployed India, we don't want a poor India, we want justice," he said.

He appealed to the people to give the Congress at least 150 seats (out of a total of 224) in the elections. "Don't give them (BJP) more than 40 seats," Gandhi said,

Gandhi reiterated the "40 per cent sarkar" charge against the Basavaraj Bommai government, adding that former Chief Minister Jagadish Shettar, who recently quit the BJP and joined the Congress, was not given a chance by the ruling party to contest in the elections as he did not indulge in corruption.

Earlier in his interaction with sugarcane farmers at Ramdurg in Belagavi district, he said India's progress depended on the progress of its farmers, labourers and small businesses.

Gandhi said his conversations with farmers in Karnataka and across India had given him insight into the "ordeals brought upon them by the corrupt BJP regime, which is only focused on helping 2-3 of its 'mitr'".

Farmers and small business owners must be protected and empowered, not assaulted with "flawed policies like the BJP's GST", he said. "The Congress party is committed to scripting such a growth story, which brings prosperity for all," he said.

"Karnataka is all set to bring in this change," added Gandhi.

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Bijnor (PTI): Two men were arrested in this Uttar Pradesh district on Friday for allegedly being in touch with a Pakistan-linked handler based in Dubai, police said.

Circle Officer, Najibabad, Anjani Kumar Chaturvedi said Uvaid Malik and Jalal Haider were arrested following inputs on their alleged links with Aqib, a resident of Meerut currently staying in Dubai.

According to police, Aqib had earlier come into the spotlight after a video surfaced on Instagram purportedly showing him displaying an AK-47 rifle and explosives.

During interrogation, the arrested men allegedly told police that Aqib used to incite youngsters against Hindus and encourage anti-national activities, the officer said, adding that detailed questioning of the accused is underway.

On April 6, Superintendent of Police (SP) Abhishek Jha said the video first surfaced in November last year. Aqib, a native of Sathla village in the Mawana area of Meerut, was allegedly seen in the video brandishing weapons.

Following the viral clip, a case was registered at the Nangal police station by sub-inspector Vinod Kumar. However, the then station house officer and investigating officer Satyendra Singh had recorded Aqib's statement and filed a final report, stating that the weapons seen in the video were toys, effectively giving him a clean chit.

Police said fresh developments have now revealed Aqib's suspicious links and the probe has been handed over to the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS).

The SP said action has been taken against the officials concerned, with the then SHO and investigating officer suspended and Circle Officer Nitesh Pratap Singh removed from his post.