Congress known for halting work after gaining power: Rajnath
The Union minister said India has made rapid strides in the economic sector and the day is not far when the country, by 2027, will become the largest economy after the United States and China.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has burnished its credentials as a party that fulfils promises made to the people, unlike the Congress that has a track record of “putting a halt on development wherever it comes to power,” defence minister Rajnath Singh said on Monday.
Addressing a rally in Raipur Rani in poll-bound Haryana, Singh said the October 5 elections is a battle between “vikas (development) that the BJP represents and vinash (destruction) that the Congress stands for”.
The ruling BJP in Haryana is hoping to win a third consecutive term in the next month’s polls while the Congress is hoping to ride on its momentum from the Lok Sabha elections to a rare assembly win.
“The young people in Haryana have contributed in making India’s borders safe. Haryana is where Kurukshetra is, and it was here that Lord Krishna gave the Bhagavad Gita to the world. This battle is between vikas and vinash,” Singh told the crowd.
“The BJP is in politics not only to form the government but for nation building. In the last 10 years, who can deny the fact that India’s heft has increased across international platforms. When India speaks today, the people listen,” he added.
The Union minister said India has made rapid strides in the economic sector and the day is not far when the country, by 2027, will become the largest economy after the United States and China.
Accusing the Congress of halting development, Singh said: “The Congress has a way of daydreaming. But whenever they come to power, they put a full stop on all development. (In Haryana) they are fighting among themselves on who will be the chief ministerial face… everyone wants to be the groom; the rest are angry uncles…”
The BJP has been targeting the Congress over alleged infighting in its Haryana unit and even claimed that the opposition party’s Dalit face in the state and Lok Sabha MP Kumari Selja is unhappy with her party over ticket distribution and has decided to stay away from the poll campaign. Former Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar had also invited Selja to join the BJP. Selja, however, dismissed talk of discord within the Congress ranks and a possible switch to the BJP, and asserted that the party will form the next government in the state.
Alleging that the Congress always “failed” to keep its promises made to the people, Singh cited the case of Himachal Pradesh where the party assured financial aid to women but is allegedly yet to disburse any money.
“They have still not met that promise of paying 1,500 per month to the women. The BJP, on the other hand, has done what it promised… take for example our promise to abrogate Article 370 (in Jammu & Kashmir),” he said referring to the Centre’s 2019 decision to scrap the provision that provided special status to the region.
Singh also said that in the last 10 years, no one could make a single accusation of irregularities against the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in the state. “There are no accusations against any ministers of the BJP. During Congress rule, even serving ministers have had to serve time,” he said.
His remarks came at a time Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah is facing a probe in the Mysuru Urban Development Authority scam.