Tumakuru, May 1 (IANS): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday launched a scathing attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his high-voltage campaign in poll-bound Karnataka, saying that "Modi Ji, these elections are not about you".
Addressing a large gathering in Turuvekere, Rahul Gandhi said, "Modi ji, you don't talk about Karnataka's issues when you come here to campaign for the elections. You only talk about yourself. You should tell the people what you did for Karnataka in the last three years.
"You should also tell what you are going to do in the next five years for the state's youth, education, health, and for eradicating corruption."
"Modi ji, the elections are not about you, they are about Karnataka's people and its future. You say that Congress attacked you 91 times, but you never speak about what you did for Karnataka. In your next speech, do tell the people of Karnataka what you did for the state in the last three years and what you intend to do in the next five years," the Congress leader said.
"We come here, give speeches, and talk about our leaders… What Siddaramaiah did, what Shivakumar did, we take their names. You (Modi) don't even take the names of your CM (Basavaraj Bommai) or Yediyurappa. Your speeches are only about Narendra Modi.
"I want to tell you about what the Congress will do for Karnataka, its youth, farmers, labourers. For the last three years, thousands of crores of rupees have been looted from the people. We want to return the money back to the people in the next five years. We want to put the money stolen by the BJP back in people's pockets," Rahul Gandhi said.
The Congress leader also said it is not that the Prime Minister is not aware of the corruption in Karnataka.
"The PM knows everything. The contractors' association wrote a letter to the PM telling him about the 40 per cent commission," Rahul Gandhi said.
"The elections are going to be held after a few days. You (people) must form your government. Last time, you did not choose the BJP but it formed the government by paying money to the MLAs, thus damaging democracy.
"For the last three years, you have seen that the BJP has indulged only in corruption in Karnataka. People of the state have given it the name ‘40 per cent Sarkara'. Whatever work it did, it took 40 per cent commission from Karnataka's people," Rahul Gandhi said.
The Congress leader also said that a BJP MLA told the media that Karnataka CM's post is up for sale for Rs 2,500 crore.
"So, these things are not hidden from the PM. If every child in Karnataka knows about the corruption in the state, the country's PM must be aware of it. So, my question to the PM is, what did you do to stop corruption and 40 per cent commission in Karnataka in the last three years? Why didn't you take any action against the corrupt leaders?
"Modi ji, if you come to Karnataka now to seek votes from the people, do tell them what decisions will you take to stop this 40 per cent commission. Do tell the people what you did when Karnataka didn't get its due tax money, which was its right. Do tell the people how did you help Karnataka when it suffered heavy losses due to floods," Rahul Gandhi said.