"PM did not implement even one of his electoral promises": Mallikarjun Kharge

GUWAHATI: Launching an all-round attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party and PM Modi, Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge said on Saturday that the Prime Minister did not implement even one of his electoral promises and still he says that Modi did a lot of work for the country.

Addressing a press conference here today, Kharge said that the BJP never fought for the independence of India, but Congress is a party of those who made India independent.

"He (PM Modi) did not implement even one of what he said (electoral promises). Still, he says that Modi did a lot of work for the country, Congress is a party of those who made India independent. The BJP never fought for the independence of India, for the development of India. We built this country. They (BJP) speak so much about patriotism that Nehru is nothing before them, Indira Gandhi is nothing before them and Lal Bahadur Shastri is nothing before them--Modi is everything. They even put the idea that India attained independence after 2014 and the country was not independent before that all of these are reflected in his words," he said.

Slamming the rebel leaders who quit the party and later joined the BJP, Kharge said that if Congress was so bad, then why did they spend 30-40 years of their lives here?

"What is sad is that those who were nurtured by the Congress party and became leaders also say the same. If Congress was so bad, why did you spend 30-40 years of your life on it unnecessarily? I don't know what has happened to them, but they too criticize Indira Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi," he added

The Congress National President also emphasized that the 2024 election is very important as it is to save the Constitution and democracy.

"This election is very important. It is not an election to humiliate any person. This election is to showcase the democracy of the country. This election is to save the Constitution. Fighting for rising inflation and unemployment. But the people of the government, especially Modi, always say that Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas. There was no development, everything was destroyed. GST is imposed on farmers, on food and drinks. He told the youth that he would provide two crore jobs. Farmers were promised to double their income. Nothing was implemented," Mallikarjun Kharge said.

Responding to Maha Vikas Aghadi not fielding any Muslim candidate in the Maharashtra Lok Sabha elections, Kharge said, "There is an alliance of three parties. All three parties make decisions together. There are some misunderstandings, too. They will be compensated for Rajya Sabha and Assembly seats. There is no problem from our side."

Further, lashing out at PM Modi over his "tight slap" reaction after the Supreme Court rejected requests for 100 per cent VVPAT verification of votes punched into EVMS, Kharge said that it is a habit of Modi to say such things.

"It is Modi's habit to speak such things. The plea was by an advocate, not my party. It was done by lawyers and NGOs," he said.