Heading a six-km-long foot march in his former Lok Sabha constituency, the Congress leader also took potshots at the BJP, saying ‘every lane in Amethi was the same’
Rahul Gandhi made his way to Amethi today along with sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Image Courtesy: @INCIndia/Twitter
Rahul Gandhi held nothing back as he led the Congress on a six-km-long padayatra in his former Lok Sabha constituency of Amethi in Uttar Pradesh.
Rahul, who was accompanied by his sister and the party’s UP in-charge Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, took on the BJP on the issue of inflation, saying the country has been thrown into the ‘quagmire of inflation’.
“Is this the ‘achche din’ that was dreamed of?” he asked to the crowds that had collected while he marched on.
He said to the people of Amethi, “Every street of Amethi is the same even today – only in the eyes of the public now there is resentment for the government.”
He blamed the Hindutvawadis, saying that if there was inflation, pain, sadness in our country, it is the work of the Hindutvawadis.
“Today, the battle is between Hindus and Hindutvawadis. If Hindus believe in ‘satyagrah’, Hindutvawadis believe in ‘sattagrah’ (political greed),” he added.
The former Amethi MP added that the nation belonged to the poor, the farmers and the MSME businessmen.
He hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that while the PM takes a dip in the Ganga river, he keeps mum on issues such as unemployment.
“Why can’t people get employment in the country today? Why inflation is increasing so quickly?” Rahul Gandhi asked.
Rahul Gandhi said the central government remains busy in marketing to divert public attention from important issues.
He also extended his thanks to the people of Amethi, saying that they had shown him the way. “I came into politics in 2004. Amethi was the city where I contested my first election. People of Amethi have taught me a lot about politics. You have shown me the way to politics and I want to thank each and everyone from Amethi.”
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was also present at the march, lashed out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his foreign visits. Priyanka said, “This is the kind of government where the PM is too busy travelling abroad, in one day helps his industrialist friends earn crores of rupees. Today under the same govt our farmers are earning only Rs 27 per day.”
She added, “The central government does not want the welfare of the people, it is not working for you. It is clear — the whole world is watching, the whole country is watching — this government is working only for a few industrialists.”
This is Rahul Gandhi’s second visit to Amethi since the 2019 Lok Sabha loss. Rahul lost the old Congress bastion to BJP’s Smriti Irani by over 50,000 votes.
Incidentally, the Gandhi siblings’ march in Amethi was held at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid the foundation stone for the Ganga Expressway in Shahjahanpur.
Upon completion, the 594-km long six-lane expressway will become the longest in Uttar Pradesh, connecting the western and eastern regions of the state.
Adressing the huge crowds, the prime minister said, “Ganga Expressway will open doors of development for Uttar Pradesh. It will generate opportunity for thousands as industry will come and employment will be generated.”
Uttar Pradesh will go to polls next year and it is one of the most important state elections in the country.
As it is famously said: The road to Delhi passes through Lucknow. The UP elections will also be seen as a litmus test for the BJP ahead of the 2024 general elections, after it suffered a drubbing at the hands of Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress in the West Bengal Assembly polls.
With inputs from agencies
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