Rahul accuses Mamata of running an autocracy', questions lack of farmers' welfare during her rule.
Kolkata: Kickstarting his Lok Sabha election campaign in West Bengal on Saturday, Congress president Rahul Gandhi accused chief minister Mamata Banerjee of running autocracy in the state. He questionned the unemployment and lack of farmers’ welfare during her rule while addressing a Congress rally at Chanchol in Malda. Mr Gandhi also pinned hope on the Congress to come to power in the state.
His sharp attack on the Trinamul supremo in her turf comes two months after Ms Banerjee’s United India rally on January 19, which saw the presence of two Congress leaders. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi had showered lavish praise on her for trying to stich an anti-BJP alliance ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.
The Trinamul, however, has fielded its candidates in all of the 42 seats in the state. The Congress has so far fielded 10 candidates leaving five for the Left Front over a seat-sharing formula which, however, failed.
Equating Ms Banerjee with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Mr Gandhi said, “On one hand Modiji keeps lying and on the other the chief minister makes promises here but nothing happens. In Bengal only one person runs the state without consulting or asking anyone. She does what comes to her mind.” “Doesnt Bengal have any voice? Shouldnt the people of Bengal have any voice? Should an individual run the state? The Congress workers are killed and beaten up here. We will see to it once the new government is formed in New Delhi. Mamataji spends the whole day giving lectures only,” he said.
“The farmers of the nation and Bengal appeal for loan waiver from Mr Modi. But neither Mr Modi nor Arun Jaitley and not even Mamataji waived off these loans. Chowkidar promised of jobs and farmers’ welfare. Has anyone been benefitted by his rule or even Mamataji here? No one is here. Please tell me what development work Mamataji undertook here in the last couple of years. Has anyone got job? Has there been any welfare of farmers here?” he asked the party workers at the rally.
Without taking the name of two-time Congress MP of Maldah Uttar Mausam Benazir Noor, who recently defected to the Trinamul and even got a Trinamul ticket, Mr Gandhi claimed that she cheated the people.
“You have voted the Congress here. But this time a person has cheated you. Keep it in mind that an old Congress candidate fooled you,” he said.
Mr Gandhi said, “Do not forget it. It is a battle of principles. That person cheated you after coming under pressure. This is a Congress bastion. Remind that person that no one can work in Bengal by cheating. Untill Congress comes to power in Bengal, the state can not see progress. We will devote our energy to ensure that Congress will fight and form government here.”
The Congress president also placed Mr Modi and Ms Banerjee on the same page over spreading falsehood and making hollow claims. He not only accused the PM of lying “all day” but also tore into him over his “Chowkidar” campaign. Mr Gandhi noted that only the rich have “Chowkidar” at their homes and the PM worked as “Chowkidar” for the industrialists.
He claimed, “Modiji tells lies all day in his speeches wherever he goes, be it on providing jobs to two crore people in a year or depositing Rs 15 lakhs in each Indian’s bank account or round-the-clock help to the farmers. You may remember that during the last Lok Sabha polls in 2014 he had declared that he did not want to become the PM. He said that all he wanted to do was to become a Chowkidar.”
Mr Gandhi sarcastically told the PM, “After stealing and getting caught for theft a Chowkidar says: I am Chowkidar and the entire nation is Chowkidar. Modiji, try to understand one thing first. The poor do not have Chowkidar at their homes. Only the rich have Chowkidar at their residences. A Chowkidar is not found in the homes of a farmer, unemployed and small shopkeeper. But a Chowkidar can be found in Anil Ambani’s house. Yes it is a fact you have worked as a Chowkidar.”
Mr Gandhi added, “You worked as the Chowkidar of Anil Ambani, Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi and Vijay Mallya.” Raising the Rafale aircraft deal he blamed Mr Modi of paying around Rs 30,000 crores to Anil Ambani-owned Reliance instead of the state-run Hindustan Aeronotical Limited which was contracted by the erstwhile UPA government led by the Congress.
