Modi gives Rs One lakh crore to Anil Ambani in 5 years, but announced only Rs 3.5 per day for poor farmers, says Rahul Gandhi

PATNA: Making a blistering attack on PM, Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said Narendra Modi gave Rs one lakh crore to Anil Ambani in the last five years, but announced only Rs 3.5 per day per person for poor farmers.

Addressing his party’s “Jan Akanksha Rally”- the Congress organised any such event after a gap of nearly three decades-- at Patna’s sprawling Gandhi Maidan, he said Narendra Modi has given crores of rupees to billionaires in the last five years. “Narendra Modi gave Rs one lakh crore to Anil Ambani, Rs 33,000 crore to Nirav Modi and Rs 30,000 crore to Mehul Choksi. These people have no dearth of wealth. Whatever they want they get, but poor people of this country just keep them watching,” Gandhi said amidst thunderous clapping from the audience.

He also attacked Modi for favouring Ambani in the Rafale deal and not fulfilling promises made to public during the last Lok Sabha elections.

He said earlier slogan of ‘Acche Din’ was used to be raised. “When they used to say ‘Achhe Din” people used to respond “Aane Wale Hai”. But now, when we say ‘Chowkidar’ people respond ‘Chore hai’,” Gandhi said and raised thrice the slogan ‘Chowkidar’ and people responded with “Chor Hai”.

He also reiterated that his party would ensure "minimum income guarantee" for every poor person in the country if it is voted to power in the coming Lok Sabha polls. Gandhi said, “We are not like Modi. We do historic works. Once we decided we do the work. We do not make just announcement like Modi.”

Gandhi also said once in power, his party would ensure to send money in the bank accounts of every poor family as minimum income guarantee.

Reminding of Modi’s failure to grant central university status to Patna university during a university’s even in October 2017, Gandhi said he would grant the central university status to PU, once his party came into power.

In 2017, Modi didn’t announce central university status to PU despite Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar made a fervent appeal to the Prime Minister for the same.

Speaking on issue of alliance with opposition parties, Congress president said that his party would not play on the back foot in Uttar Pradesh. He said in Bihar, Congress would now play on the front foot along with Lalu Prasad’s RJD and make a sixer in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Gandhi also said that the opposition’s alliance would come into power at the Centre after the Lok Sabha polls and soon after that the Bihar’s GA would form its own government in the state.

“I have already told in Uttar Pradesh that Congress will not play on the back foot. In Bihar, we will play on the front foot along with Tejashwi Ji, Lalu Ji,” the Congress president said. He also took the names of HAM(S) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi and RLSP chief Upendra Kushwaha with whom the Congress would contest the Lok Sabha election in Bihar but forget to take the name of VIkassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief Mukesh Sahni. Though Sahni was sitting on the same dais.

From the Bihar’s grand alliance, RJD’s Tejashwi, HAM(S) Jitan Ram Manjhi, LJD’s Sharad Yadav spoke on the occasion and termed Rahul Gandhi a fit candidate for the post of PM.

RLSP MP Ram Kumar Sharma represented Kushwaha at the Congress rally as he (Kushwaha) was undergoing treatment at the PMCH after yesterday’s police lathi-charge on him. From the Left parties, CPI’s state secretary Satya Narayan Singh addressed the Congress rally.