BJP only ahead in corruption, says Rahul

Says this time elections are not about fights between parties, but between two different ways of thinking

Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi Thursday accused the BJP of ignoring the poor and said the only thing the opposition party is ahead in is indulging in corruption.

"We make better and more roads, railway lines and airports. We are ahead of the opposition in everything. I would like to say this from a public platform that they are better in only one thing. It is corruption," Gandhi said addressing an election rally in the tribal belt of Rajasthan's Banswara district, over 500 km from Jaipur.

Addressing a gathering estimated at numbering between 25,000-30,000 in a sports ground of a private college here, he said states like Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh which are being governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are way ahead in corruption.

Gandhi, who spoke for about 15 minutes, contended that this time elections are not about fights between parties, but between two different ways of thinking.

He said the focus of the Congress is not only on infrastructure development, but also on launching welfare schemes for the poor, while the BJP thinks all about making roads, railway lines and airports.

"They think of roads, railways and airports. We also think of these infrastructure development, but we go beyond them. We think about poor people also," he said.

He claimed that three times more roads were constructed during the Congress regime.

"In Rajasthan, 1,200 MW electricity was produced during the previous government. During the Ashok Gehlot government, over 7,000 MW electricity was produced. You can see who is ahead in undertaking development works," he said.

"Our politics is about poor, tribal and dalits. Poor and tribal (people) don't get benefited only by railway lines and roads. The wall of poverty around them has to be razed down. It is our primary focus," Gandhi said.

He said that is why the Congress introduced employment guarantee schemes, food security bill, right to education act and several other public welfare projects.

"However, the opposition says that we are wasting money. Their leaders are making several promises, but they have not uttered a single word about the poor. There is no place for hunger in this country and we understand this," said Gandhi.

He praised the welfare schemes launched by the Gehlot government in Rajasthan.

Congress workers danced and shouted slogans even as Gandhi reached the dais after getting off a helicopter. People, mainly youngsters, were snapping his photographs with their mobile phones when his helicopter landed.

Assembly polls will take place in Rajasthan Dec 1.

Gehlot, party general secretary C.P. Joshi and other senior leaders also spoke on the occasion.

In his speech, the chief minister focused on development and social welfare schemes introduced by his government.