Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati on Friday trained her guns at Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi for allegedly refusing to have a meal in a Dalit's home, where he spent Thursday night, during the course of his four-day padyatra in the state's western parts.
Terming the padyatra as a "gimmick" and "melodrama", the statement on behalf of Mayawati said: "Rahul Gandhi spent last night in the home of Uday Vir, a dalit belonging to the kanjar sub-caste in Marodgarhi village; but he preferred to get his food from outside and even his personal staff and security personnel chose to eat at the local village head's home."
"This clearly depicts that Rahul is basically anti-Dalit and has simply been staging a drama by sleeping in the homes of Dalits with whom he avoids eating a meal," the statement said.
Hitting out at Gandhi scion for raising the pitch about farmers' problems in parts of Uttar Pradesh, the statement said: "Why doesn't he go to the Congress-ruled states where farmers were getting a raw deal?"
Reacting to Gandhi's repeated attacks on the state's law and order situation, reflected in the spate of rapes over the recent past, the statement said if he was really concerned about insecurity of women, then "why did he not care to visit the poor women who have been raped in Congress-ruled Delhi or Haryana?"
{{/usCountry}}Reacting to Gandhi's repeated attacks on the state's law and order situation, reflected in the spate of rapes over the recent past, the statement said if he was really concerned about insecurity of women, then "why did he not care to visit the poor women who have been raped in Congress-ruled Delhi or Haryana?"
{{/usCountry}}