Modi had made the statement on Wednesday while addressing a rally in East Delhi, which has a significant number of Dalit voters. Modi had alleged that the Congress replaced Rawat as its Vadodara candidate since he is a Dalit.
In a statement released here today, Rawat came down heavily upon Modi for misusing his name for false propaganda and misguiding Dalits, pointing out that when the Vadodara seat is a general seat, there is hardly any question of injustice being meted out to Dalits.
"Because I felt that the party needed a seasoned and experienced candidate to take on Modi, while it was a new experiment for me to contest Lok Sabha polls," Rawat said.
Modi had stated that Rawat withdrew his candidature on Tuesday, making way for Congress general secretary Madhusudan Mistry to contest from Vadodara, adding that Rahul Gandhi's brainchild (primaries) had died prematurely.
