Sibal kicks off Cong's anti-Modi media blitz

Senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal on Tuesday said Indians had committed a mistake by choosing Narendra Modi as prime minister, as the party launched a campaign to counter the NDA government’s claims on completion of one year in office.

Sibal’s press conference on Tuesday was the beginning of a high-voltage media blitz planned by the Congress to attack the NDA government on its “failures”.

“You have made a wrong person prime minister. Instead of focusing on main issues, Modi says his biggest achievement was to bring the US President as chief guest on Republic Day while farmers and small traders were suffering,” the former Union minister told reporters here.

The Congress plans to release a booklet on May 26, the Modi government’s first anniversary, listing its failures and the “betrayal” of the people on issues ranging from governance, economy and politics to administration.

Other senior Congress leaders, such as P Chidambaram, Anand Sharma, Ghulam Nabi Azad, Jairam Ramesh and Salman Khurshid, are expected to address the media to highlight U-turns by the Modi government, non-fulfilment of poll promises and vacancy in top posts such as Central Vigilance Commissioner and Central Information Commissioner.
A team of Congress leaders will also visit state capitals to highlight how the NDA government was merely “repackaging” UPA initiatives and “helping a handful of corporate leaders” through its decisions.

On Tuesday, Sibal slammed Modi over his comment that people were ashamed of being born in India before his government came to power.

He also said Modi, while interacting with people of Indian origin in Seoul on Monday, said people would earlier think they were born in India due to sins had they committed.
“He speaks without thinking. It has become a habit,” said Sibal after playing a clip of Modi’s speech in Seoul.

“Baat mann ki prime time, encounter each time, suicide high time, achchhe din only mine,” he said in verse to hit out at Modi. He said the prime minister likes non-resident Indians the most, and does not care for people in India.

“Whenever he goes out, he says India has changed, but he would not say that to people in the country,” he said.