No repeat of 2017: Rahul tells people of Gujarat

Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday cautioned the people of Gujarat against repeating the “shortcoming” of 2017 when the party lost the assembly elections by a whisker to the BJP.

Addressing a rally in this village surrounded by sugarcane fields and mango orchards near Bardoli town, Rahul told the farmers gathered in huge numbers that the Congress had planned a loan waiver scheme for them in 2017.

“But there was some shortcoming. We could not form the government,” the Congress President said pointing out that the party had implemented farm loan waiver in neighbouring Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh within days of forming the government.

It was in Bardoli that Vallabhbhai Patel started the satyagraha for farmers in June 1928 that later earned him the sobriquet of ‘sardar’. Bardoli has a large voter base of tribals, Patels and minorities and both the Congress and the BJP are wooing them in equal measure.

The BJP’s control over the cooperative sector in the region adds heft to their campaign seeking the re-election of Prabhu Vasava, while Congress is banking on the anti-incumbency against the candidate and differences within the BJP for its nominee Tushar Chaudhary to sail through.

During his 30-minute speech heard by an audience in rapt attention under searing 40 degrees Celsius at noon, Rahul focussed on the separate Kisan budget promised by the Congress in its manifesto and promised the youth to create jobs.

“There are 22 lakh vacancies in government jobs. I promise to fill it in one year. In addition, 10 lakh youth can be employed at the Panchayat level and I promise to do that within one year too,” the Congress President said.

Chaudhary, the Congress candidate, said the elections were not for making Rahul the next Prime Minister or himself a Lok Sabha member. “This is an election to preserve our very existence,” said Chaudhary, a former Union Minister, and the son of former chief minister Amarsinh Chaudhary.

“We could not fulfil the dream of installing a government of farmers in 2017. We will do it now,” Rajeev Satav, AICC in-charge of Gujarat, said addressing the rally.

Rahul also touched upon his pet themes – Rafale fighter aircraft deal and took pot shots at Modi over his 2014 appeal to appoint him as chowkidar.

“Gujarat gave 26 seats to make Narendra Modi the prime minister. It is not a small thing to do. But what did Modi tell the people of Gujarat? ‘Don’t make me the prime minister, appoint me as the chowkidar’,” Rahul said as the audience erupted into slogans of ‘chowkidar chor hai’.

“He never told you that he will be the chowkidar (watchman) for Anil Ambani, Mehul Choksi, Nirav Modi or Vijay Mallya,” Rahul said.