BJP dividing people, says Rahul

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi Tuesday accused the BJP of dividing people on the basis of religion, caste and region in a bid to win the coming elections.

Addressing an election rally of some 20,000 people in Bikaner, over 350 km from Jaipur, Gandhi also made fun of Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi.

The BJP, he said, was splitting people on religious ground and also on the strength of their caste and region.

He took a dig at Modi's election rallies, and said the speeches of BJP leaders were "good".

"Their speeches are shown from different angles -- from above, from below, from left and from right. This is their marketing style, and it has nothing to do with the reality or truth."

Gandhi returned to his favourite theme -- the Congress vision versus the opposition thinking.

"The opposition wants roads and airports should be developed, we also think so. We say that infrastructure should always be built but people who build them should also be helped.

"This is the meaning of the government of common people," he said. "We know the country well enough, so we talk about the poor."

The BJP claims that the country's road network was developed in a big way when the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance was in power from 1998 to 2004.

"But when I checked the statistics, I found that UPA (United Progressive Alliance) built three times more roads than NDA."

Gandhi profusely praised the Congress government in Rajasthan, in particular Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot.

Besides developing infrastructure, the state government has provided jobs to poor and given free medicines and medical test facilities to all.

In Rajasthan, at least 600 generic medicines are provided free of cost to the poor in government hospitals.

Gehlot and other Congress leaders also spoke on the occasion.

Earlier, addressing a rally at Chittorgarh, Gandhi accused the opposition of being "anti-poor".

"We say this country is for everyone, the rich and poor, farmers and tribals. The opposition talks about infrastructure development, building of airports and roads but they do not talk about the poor."

Gandhi said the Congress should also be credited for issuing the Right to Information Act and ensuring food security to the people.

He highlighted the significance of the Delhi-Mumbai industrial corridor and pointed out how it would benefit people at large.

He reminded the audience that when his father and then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi spoke about computerization, the opposition was ranged against him.

But now computers have become an important part of life, he said.

"The opposition is not worried about the future. They are only interested in grabbing power.

"Those who want to divide the country only think about the present," said Gandhi.