Bhopal/Chhatarpur, Nov 18 (IANS): Without naming Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi said Monday that the "Congress vice president" had lowered the dignity of the Prime Minister's Office.

He also targeted the Congress, saying its "vote bank politics had destroyed the country" and "the country needed politics of development in the 21st century."

"The prime minister says BJP leaders have taken politics to a new low. Who has taken the prime minister's post to a low?" Modi asked at a rally in Chattarpur.

"No BJP person has lowered the dignity of the PM's office. Those sitting close to you have lowered the dignity of your office. Your party vice president calls your decision nonsense in front of the full media," he said.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, at a rally Sunday, had said: "The BJP leader from Gujarat" is always talking about the Gujarat model of development but "several question marks were raised over the Gujarat model of development".

Without naming Modi, Manmohan Singh had said he had brought down the standard of political discourse and asked people to "think seriously" what the party, which believes in "demeaning others", will do to the country.

In Bhopal, Modi targeted the Congress.

"The vote bank politics has destroyed the country. The country needs politics of development. Development is the main issue in the 21st century and not social division," Modi said.

He claimed that development takes place in states where the BJP is in power.