Senior BJP leader and former minister Ravi Shankar Prasad remarked that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi requires permission to visit Haryana because the Congress in the state has essentially become “Hooda Congress”.
“The Congress party across India may be national, but in Haryana, it’s Hooda Congress. Even Rahul Gandhi cannot come here without Hooda’s consent. I heard that Congress even Rahul Gandhi was considering an alliance in the state, but Hooda refused, so it didn’t materialise,” the BJP MP stated.
Prasad in an interaction with newsmen at Rohtak, emphasized the stark choice before voters: the BJP’s ten years of development versus Congress’ ten years of scams and corruption.
Prasad, also taking a swipe at Rahul Gandhi’s recent jibe about Haryana’s famous ‘jalebi’, remarked, “Rahul Gandhi needs to understand how a jalebi is made and sold before making such statements. Wherever Rahul goes, he makes ‘khattakhat’ promises without follow-up. In Himachal Pradesh, he promised women Rs. 1,500, but nothing has been delivered yet.”
The former Union minister contrasted the BJP’s governance with Congress’ rule, accusing the latter of running a corrupt administration during its tenure. “Two narratives are clear in Haryana’s election: ten years of BJP rule versus ten years of Congress. The people of Haryana have to decide which ten years they want to follow. Congress had a ‘kharchi and parchi’ (favoritism and corruption) system, while under BJP, jobs have been given purely on merit,” he said. Highlighting the strides Haryana has made in IT and industrial sectors under the BJP government, Prasad said, “Gurugram has become a global IT hub, with the largest backend offices. During Hooda’s time, industrial unrest was prevalent. Today, Haryana is witnessing IT expansion and technological advancement, generating large-scale employment.”Prasad also accused Congress of neglecting former Union Minister Kumari Selja, saying that her seniority within the party was disregarded.
“The way Kumari Selja was treated, we all saw. Her seniority should have been respected,” he added, further questioning why Congress released its manifesto in Delhi rather than in Haryana. “They could have done it in Rohtak, Karnal, or Chandigarh, but it seems they lacked the confidence to launch it here,” he stated.
Taking a further dig at Congress, Prasad brought up the “damad shri” reference to criticise land deals under the Congress regime, an apparent reference to Robert Vadra, the businessman and son-in-law of former Congress President Sonia Gandhi. “During Congress’ time, their model for Gurugram was the ‘damad shri model’ – a model of land deals for the benefit of the privileged few,” he remarked.
