Guj:BJP, Cong spar over memes mocking Guj as development model

Social media memes purportedly taking swipe at the BJP's claims of Gujarat being the "model of development" has triggered a war of words between the ruling party and opposition Congress.
Numerous memes have been in circulation on the social media platforms with a Gujarati tagline: "vikas gando thai gayo chhe (development has gone crazy). These memes are accompanied by humorous videos and pictures of people taking selfies or riding a bicycle.
Development is a main political plank of the BJP in Gujarat, where elections are due later this year. Top leaders of the saffron party often project Gujarat as the most developed state in the country.

Reacting to the images, state unit BJP president Jitu Vaghani told reporters that "Vikas (development) may have gone crazy but vikas is going to win".
"Gujarat has shown the model of development to the world. And in development lies everybody's interest. The work of the Congress has been to create a strife in the name of caste, creed, religion, and community...The opposition party has divided people and made them fight in name of reservation and other such policies," he said.
The BJP leader said his party had worked for the development of all communities, while keeping the interest of dalits and backward classes in mind.

However, state unit Congress president Bharatsinh Solanki said the talk of development by Vaghani is "crazy".
"The president of the state unit of BJP does not know what he is saying. He meant that a crazy person will win the election. But he should understand that people of Gujarat are intelligent and enlightened who will not hand over the reins to such people again," he told reporters.