Modi ran TN govt from Delhi: Rahul

In a scathing attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the Prime Minister was not respecting Tamils, their culture, their language, their farmers and thinks "by controlling the Tamil Nadu government, he can control the people of the state."

Rahul Gandhi addressed public meetings in Krishnagiri, Salem, Theni and Madurai. His sole target was Modi. In all his four speeches, Rahul Gandhi accused the BJP and Narendra Modi of running the Tamil Nadu government from New Delhi by "pressurising the government of the day."

Playing the Tamil card and pride to the core, the Congress President spoke about the "ill-effects" of GST and demonetisation, which he claimed, crippled the knitwear hub of Tiruppur and silk city of Kancheepuram and invoked S Anitha, the young medical aspirant who killed herself in 2017, to drive home the point that NEET will not be imposed on Tamil Nadu if Congress were to come to power.

“I think I am going to send him a book of Mr Periyar, with compliments. I will tell him to read this so that you understand the people. May be few books of Kalaignar Karunanidhiji (as well). The gentleman (Modi) has no idea what Tamil Nadu is (and) he does not understand that throughout Tamil history, only Tamil people have decided the future of Tamil Nadu," Rahul Gandhi said.

“He (Modi) does not understand there is no force in this universe that will make them do what they don’t want to," the Congress President said.

Rahul Gandhi accused Modi of not having the "decency" to hear Tamil Nadu farmers who protested in New Delhi for two months. Promising a separate budget for farmers’ if Congress were to come to power, he said his party will it illegal to put any farmer in jail for default on loan.

Funding Nyay

Responding to questions that where Congress will find money to fund Nyay, the Congress chief said he would bring back the "money looted" by industrialists like Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi to fund the schemes. "I want to assure every one of you that I will not take the money from you to implement these projects," he said.

On Congress manifesto, he said the document was not the voice of one man, but that of an entire nation. "It was created after conversations with farmers, labourers, women, youngsters and all sections of society were consulted before preparing this manifesto. This manifesto is not the Mann Ki Baat of one megalomaniac. This is the kaam ki baat of the nation," he said.