Bullet train a ‘magic’ locomotive that may not appear, says Rahul Gandhi

Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday termed the proposed bullet train as ‘jaadu ki train’ and said the project would never turn into a reality. “If at all the project gets completed, it will be during the Congress’s regime,” he said.

Addressing party workers at Fursatganj during his two-day visit to his parliamentary constituency Amethi, Gandhi hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said the BJP government at the Centre was snatching money from small and medium traders and giving it to a handful of industrialists who were also Modi’s ‘marketing managers’.

“India has three challenges – unemployment, farmers’ issues and inflation. Small and medium trade generates jobs but Modiji has broken its backbone through demonetisation and the GST (goods and services tax). Last year, he did not announce waiver of farmers’ loan but waived Rs 2 lakh crore loan of industrialists.”

Gandhi asked Congress workers to stay united and weed out the BJP and the RSS. He also spoke on ‘Project Shakti’, a messaging platform launched for Congress workers to directly get in touch with the top leadership.

Gandhi asked Congress workers to meet the people and ask them to think how Jai Shah, BJP chief Amit Shah’s son, converted Rs 50,000 into Rs 80 crore in one year.

He interacted with local farmers, and felicitated lyricist and screenwriter Manoj Muntashir and shooter Ruchi Singh. He also met the family of a farmer Abdul Sattar who died waiting to sell his produce at a mandi on May 4. “Rahulji has said the entire matter will be probed,” said Sattar’s brother M Iliyas Nadvi.

Gandhi will hold a ‘janata darbar’ in Gauriganj on Thursday .