Maharashtra election: Current govt handed over Dharavi to Adani, says Rahul

Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi alleged that the people in Maharashtra were "deprived" of their government and claimed that the current government "handed over" Dharavi to Adani.

Addressing a public rally in Maharashtra's Nanded on Thursday, Rahul Gandhi said, "In Maharashtra, the people were deprived of their government. Adani was present in the meeting held to topple the government. After all, why was Adani sitting in that political meeting? They were sitting there because they wanted Dharavi. Then this government handed over Dharavi to Adani."

"There is unemployment in the state, the prices are going up, Adani, Ambani are not getting hurt by all this, their wealth is increasing. They got airports, ports, roads, and now they are getting Dharavi. The loss is yours (locals), the loss is of soyabean farmers, of workers, of unemployed youth," he added.

Gandhi further criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi regarding the situation in Manipur.

"PM Narendra Modi has not been able to visit Manipur till date. He keeps making everyone fight and keeps dividing everyone," he said.

Contrasting it with his 'Bharat Jodo Yatra,' he recounted, "We did the 'Bharat Jodo Yatra' of 4000 kilometers. Why did we need to do it? The slogan given in this journey was: We have to open a shop of love in the market of hatred. But wherever they (BJP) go, they spread hatred. They make one state fight with another. Look at Manipur - what is the situation there today?"

Earlier in the day, PM Modi, while addressing a public rally in Shivaji Park in Mumbai, alleged that the Congress and the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) seem focused on dividing people in the state.

"After independence, the Congress government was in power at the centre for decades and here too for decades. But they did not bother to make any future plans for Mumbai. The result was that Mumbai continued to lag behind. The character of Congress is exactly opposite to the character of Mumbai. The character of Mumbai is honesty and hard work. The character of Mumbai is the urge to move ahead. But the character of Congress is corruption. The character of Congress is to push the country backwards. The character of Congress is to create obstacles in development," he said.

Voting for the 288-member assembly is scheduled to be held on November 20, with counting to be held in November 23.