Sonia targets BJP government, Modi hits at individuals

Announcement of MSP on forest produces would draw political mileage to Congress in tribal heartland

While Congress President Sonia Gandhi lashed out at the Raman Singh government, Bharatiya Janata Party’s Prime Minister-in-waiting Narendra Modi split venom against the individuals.

Both the leaders on Thursday accelerated the election campaign in Chhattisgarh and addressed public meetings in Bastar that goes to the poll in the first phase on November 11. Sonia addressed the meeting in Kondagaon while Modi’s meeting was organised in Jagdalpur—about 100 km away.

The Congress President did not target any individual during her speech and attacked the state government headed by Raman Singh. On the contrary, Modi did not spare “anyone”; castigating Sonia Gandhi, Rahul and Nitish Kumar in the high voltage election campaign in Chhattisgarh.

Sonia pulled up BJP government in Chhattisgarh over law and order situation, recalling the May 25 Naxal attack in Bastar that had eliminated the entire Congress leadership. She said the state government had not been using the fund that the Centre had been releasing for the development works.

The announcement of maximum support price (MSP) on forest produces would be the salient feature of her speech that would draw political mileage to the Congress in the tribal heartland.

 Without naming Nitish Kumar, Modi called the Bihar Chief Minister as arrogant for allegedly acting insensitively to meet the victims of October 27 Patna blasts. Modi once again addressed Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi as "shahzada (prince) despite protest by the Congress leaders in the past.

“The shahzada in Delhi is misguiding people by saying they have brought the food security law while food security was first implemented by the BJP government in Chhattisgarh,” Modi said. Attacking Sonia Gandhi, he said she should speak on scams.

Modi said he salute the people of Chhattisgarh for rejecting Congress government as it would have taken the state to a misery. “The vote should be for development,” Modi said, adding that BJP had prepared the foundation for development in Chhattisgarh and the growth in the state could not be stopped for another 100 years.

He added that poor people eat rice with onion and the UPA government had snatched away that too. Modi took a dig at feeding a family with Rs 26 a day and quipped people in Delhi say that the shehzada who pays Rs 100-200 for a bottle of water in 5-star hotels had been saying so.