Rahul Addresses ‘Kisan Abhar’ Rally in MP, Slams Modi Over Rafale

Gandhi held discussions with party leaders in Bhopal before leaving for the Kisan Abhar rally.

Congress President Rahul Gandhi, Madhya Pradesh CM Kamal Nath and AICC General Secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia during a public meeting in Bhopal.

(Photo: PTI)

Kicking off his poll campaigning in Madhya Pradesh, Congress president Rahul Gandhi visited Bhopal on Friday, 8 February, to address the ‘Kisan Abhar’ rally.

Gandhi held discussions with party leaders in Bhopal before leaving for the Jamburi Maidan, where the rally was held.

Gandhi said during the rally that the ‘minimum income guarantee’ which his party is promising would not be like Narendra Modi government’s Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme, under which farmers will get only “Rs 17 per day”.

Gandhi also alleged that the Prime Minister's Office was directly involved in conducting negotiations with the French side for Rafale fighter jets and this had weakened the Ministry of Defence's (MoD) negotiations on the same deal.

"We are not going to insult you by giving Rs 17 per day," Gandhi said, taking a jibe the Centre's recent budget announcement of Rs 6,000 per year cash support for farmers under the Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme.

“When we (Congress governments) decided to waive farm loan in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan within ten days (of coming to power), Narendra Modi got scared. (One can) Get any work done by Narendra Modi by frightening him.”

Rahul Gandhi, Congress President

"Modi (in the Lok Sabha) said that he also works for farmers.... BJP MPs thumped the table for five minutes. I was surprised, asking what happened. Then we came to know that they have decided to give Rs 17 per day to farmers," he added.

"On one hand, the Modi government wrote off Rs 3.50 lakh crore debt of top 15 rich people, but gives a paltry Rs 17 per day, which means Rs 3.50 per person per day, to farmers. Clap, clap, what a wonderful job," the Congress chief said, mocking the Modi government's announcement.

Reiterating his allegations on the Rafale deal, Gandhi said, "You must have read it in the newspapers this morning that the Defence Ministry officials said that Narendra Modi was directly involved in Rafale deal with France, without their knowledge."

The prime minister on Thursday evening spoke for an hour and 45 minutes in the Lok Sabha, but did not speak about Rafale deal, he pointed out.

"The defence secretary wrote on the file that Narendra Modi conducted parallel negotiations and weakened the negotiation of Defence Ministry, cancelled their (Ministry's) deal. The Chowkidar (Modi) doesn't speak a word about this but truth can't be concealed," he said.

Speaking at the rally, organised to thank the Congress chief for implementing farm loan waiver in Madhya Pradesh, Gandhi also said that food processing units would be set up across the state.

The Congress chief also said that the state would compete with China in providing jobs to the youth, and people will soon see things such as mobile phones and shirts with tags Made in MP, Made in Bhopal or Indore, instead of Made in China.

Chief Minister Kamal Nath and Congress general secretary Jyotiraditya Scindia had also addressed the gathering.

(With inputs from PTI, IANS)