Almost two years after abandoning her poll campaign midway in Varanasi, United Progress Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi hit the campaign trail in Karnataka on Tuesday, 8 May, launching a blistering attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government.
Addressing a public rally in Vijayapura, Bijapur, Gandhi emphasised on the Congress party's pro-poor orientation, while accusing PM Modi of "insulting not only the farmers but also the state of Karnataka".
Farmers of Karnataka have been suffering due to drought. CM Siddaramaiah wanted to meet PM over this issue, but he (the latter) refused. By doing this, he has insulted not only the farmers but also the state of Karnataka.Sonia Gandhi in Bijapur, Karnataka
‘Central Govt Working in a Biased Manner’
She added that the central government had been "working in a biased manner" against the state, and credited the Congress for starting numerous schemes for the people and making Karnataka "the country's number one state".
All the states that suffered from drought were given compensation (by the Centre). Karnataka was provided with the least. This was like rubbing salt into the wounds of farmers. I ask Modi ji, is this your ‘sabka saath, sabka vikaas’?Sonia Gandhi in Bijapur, Karnataka
The UPA chairperson further slammed the PM, saying that while he is a "very good orator", his speeches cannot fill empty stomachs and end hunger in the country.
Apart from accusing Modi of "distorting historical facts" and using names of historical personalities for his political motives, Gandhi also took a jibe at him for “obsessing over a Congress-mukt bharat (a Congress-free India)".
It is not yet clear whether Gandhi will be addressing more rallies in Karnataka after Tuesday, before the state goes to polls on 12 May.
Party sources had earlier told PTI that she was to address only Tuesday's rally.
Before Tuesday’s rally, Gandhi had not campaigned for almost two years. She was inactive during electioneering in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Nagaland.
The former Congress chief was taken ill during a road show in Varanasi on 2 August 2016, ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections.
In her absence, it was her son Rahul Gandhi who had steered the party's campaign.
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