Janjivan Bureau / Ahmedabad : Prime Minister Narendra Modi today dared the Congress to contest the Gujarat Assembly elections on the issue of development, while regretting the “degeneration” of the country’s oldest party to the level of negativism to “mislead people with communal and castiest politics”.
Addressing BJP workers at the culmination of the two-leg 15-day “Gujarat Gaurav Yatra”, Modi attacked the Congress for its alleged “anti-Gujarat” policies right from the inception of the state and said the only mission of the Congressmen was to “protect and promote” interests of the Nehru-Gandhi family.
He termed the upcoming Gujarat elections a contest between the BJP’s “policy of development” and the Congress’ “protection of the Gandhi family”. “Development will win hands down,” he said.
To blunt the Congress’ criticism of GST and demonetisation, Modi said the GST was the policy of all parties and all state governments. “If anyone is facing any problem for its implementation, the Congress is equally responsible.” Claiming that demonetisation had started “showing success”, Modi said even when the digging was still on about the black money of the 2.1 lakh-odd fictitious companies, it had already laid its hands on Rs 4,000 crore stashed by 5,000 shell companies.
He also ridiculed the Congress’ plan to observe November 8, the first anniversary of demonetisation, as “black money day” when the BJP had planned to celebrate the day as “black money eradication day”.
Modi said subsequent Congress governments in Delhi had done “injustice” to Gujarat. “Sardar Patel, Morarji Desai, former Janata Dal CM Babubhai Jashbhai Patel and many others were denied legitimate dues just because they hailed from Gujarat. Former Congress CM Madhavsinh Solanki was among those who suffered injustice at the hands of the first Congress family,” he said.
He said Solanki was forced to resign as the External Affairs Minister only to “protect” then PM Rajiv Gandhi. During his last visit to the state, Modi had ridiculed Solanki for taking credit for inaugurating a mere water tank in Jamnagar and criticised his “narrow and limited vision for development”.
Modi said the BJP’s winning spree had unnerved the Congress, which lost its capacity to think positively and degenerated into “politics of lies and negativism” to mislead people.
To woo the trading community, Modi said the Centre would not harass them for “suspected tax evasions in the past” if they registered themselves in the Goods and Services Tax regime.
