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Rahul reaches out to Patels at his Surat Rally

Last Updated 03 November 2017, 20:21 IST

 Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Friday ended his third leg of three-day poll campaign tour 'Navsarjan Gujarat Yatra' by reaching out to Patidaar community and peddling soft hindutva at a public rally in Patel-dominated Varachha area.

Speaking at a rally in Kranti Maidan, Rahul began by raising slogans made famous by Patel quota stir in the state - 'Jai Sardar Jai Patidaar' and 'Jai Bhavani, Bhajap javani' (Jai Bhavani, BJP is set to go),

He then launched a tirade of barbs at BJP, saying that there are two truths – one of six crore people of Gujarat and another one of BJP. "The truth of people of Gujarat is unemployment, of injustice, of price rise. The truth of BJP is corruption, of bullets on Patidaars, of flogging dalits in Una, of poverty and hunger of Adivasis. The fight is now between these two truths," he told a sizeable gathering comprising of Patel youngsters waving flags of Patel agitation and shouting "Hardik, Hardik" throughout Rahul's speech.

He invoked the soft loan of Rs 33,000 crore extended to Tata Group for setting up of Nano plant. "In Rs 35,000 crore, UPA government through MNREGA provided for crores of jobs. Modi ji gave away Rs 33,000 crore to one company. When we ask for debt waiver for farmers, Jaitley ji says it is not our policy. That too when they have waived over Rs 1.5 lakh crore in loans to industrialists," he said.

Being present in Gujarat's commercial capital, Rahul did not miss out on reminding the business community of Surat the impact demonetisation and GST has had on their business.

"You have got into a habit of listening to Narendra Modiji's Mann-ki-baat very often. If we come to power, you don't have to listen to us but we will listen to you. The day Congress comes to power in India, we shall change GST," Gandhi added.

Continuing with the Mann ki Baat theme, Rahul said that it seems on the issue of Amit Shah's son's company growing 16,000 times in a few months, Modi ji's motto appears to have changed to "na bolugna na bolne dunga" (Neither shall I speak, nor allow anyone to speak). "He claims to be the chowkidar of the country. If that is so, he should institute an inquiry into the company of Amit Shah's son. If he doesn't, he is not a chowkidar but a bhagidaar (Partner)."

Invoking Amit Shah's name also helped charged up Patel youth in the crowd who began shouting 'General Dyer, down down". And before ending his speech, Rahul said that he would be back in Surat on November 8 to visit factories, companies and meet people to listen to them. And perhaps to keep a door open for Hardik to have a meeting with him in Surat, a day after Hardik has said Congress must clarify its stance on how it proposes to give quotas to Patels and a day after Amit Shah visits Surat to address party workers.

ENDS

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(Published 03 November 2017, 20:14 IST)

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