In a scathing attack, Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress of engaging in corruption and deceit and painted the party as a “shop of loot” and a “market of lies”. He asserted that the Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government in Rajasthan was on the brink of downfall, a prediction based on the palpable “anger” among the state’s residents.
Addressing a large public rally at Norangdesar, PM Modi alleged that the state government, under Congress leadership, had established an unsavoury reputation for corruption, crime, and politics of appeasement. He charged that the current administration had allowed Rajasthan to become infamous for crimes against women.
“The protectors here are becoming the predators. The whole government seems to be busy in saving rape and murder accused,” Modi said. He criticised the Congress party’s impact on the nation, accusing it of weakening the country when in power and tarnishing its image when out of power.
The Prime Minister asserted that while Congress leaders defamed India abroad, BJP workers dedicated their lives to the country’s prosperity. He further argued that the Congress administration had inflicted considerable damage on Rajasthan over the past four years, predicting a certain defeat for the party in the next elections.
Modi claimed to have learned of ministers and legislators vacating their government bungalows in anticipation of defeat, a move he said reflected the certainty of their electoral downfall.
“There is only one meaning of the Congress… ‘loot ki dukaan’ and ‘jhooth ka bazaar’,” he said. Modi suggested that Rajasthan should have excelled in implementing the piped water project, Jal Jeevan Mission, but instead, it lagged behind.
Modi also criticised the Gehlot government for making empty promises as elections approach and asserted that the farmers of Rajasthan were the biggest victims of Congress’s “politics of lies and deceit.”
Taking aim at Congress’s internal disputes, Modi said the Chief Minister was more concerned about his son’s future than the future of Rajasthan’s youth.
Touching upon the military, Modi alleged that the Congress questioned the authenticity of the surgical strike and air strike, showing disregard for the army.
Commenting on the infighting between Gehlot and his former deputy Sachin Pilot, Modi stated that the Congress government was preoccupied with factionalism and internal conflicts rather than focusing on development.
PM Modi concluded his address by calling for a stable, development-oriented government in Rajasthan, underlining the need for ‘Vikasvaad’ (Developmentism), not ‘Parivarvaad’ (Familism).
At the same rally, Union Minister of State for Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Arjun Ram Meghwal, lauded the Modi government’s investment-friendly policies that have made Bikaner a hub of solar energy and predicted its future role as a ceramic hub.