Amid the caste politics of Uttar Pradesh, Rahul Gandhi chose to take on post politics. On Tuesday, a day after the Congress general secretary criticised senior politicians for their preoccupation with the prime minister's post, his comments became sharper.
From chief minister Mayawati to her mentor Kanshi Ram and Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav, no one escaped unscathed.
Politicians always perform better before holding posts, Gandhi said, since politics of post creates a barrier between the politician and the masses.
"Initially, Mayawati did some good work. But after becoming chief minister, she built a 40-feet high boundary at her home," he said. "Even Kanshi Ram did good work before his party came to power."
As for Mulayam Singh Yadav, who did some "good work" for the masses, "forgot about their plight" after assuming the state's top job.
"Politics does not mean grabbing posts but serving the people," he added amid wild applause at the rally in Bhadohi's Prem Bahadur Singh Public School.
Reiterating the people-oriented approach of his party, he even took issue with senior leader Salman Khurshid's statement. "It is not Rahul Gandhi who has shown the way to people, but people have shown the way to Rahul Gandhi," he said. "I have been educated abroad, but the farmers of Bundelkhand taught me what my professors could not."
{{/usCountry}}Reiterating the people-oriented approach of his party, he even took issue with senior leader Salman Khurshid's statement. "It is not Rahul Gandhi who has shown the way to people, but people have shown the way to Rahul Gandhi," he said. "I have been educated abroad, but the farmers of Bundelkhand taught me what my professors could not."
{{/usCountry}}Referring to the Centre's Rs 6000-crore weavers' package, Gandhi said, "Now, things will change for the better".