New Delhi, Jan 16 (IANS): BJP leader Maneka Gandhi Thursday launched an attack on the Congress party, saying it was a "sinking ship" that no one could save.
She also said party vice president Rahul Gandhi, also her nephew, was "no match" for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prime minister candidate Narendra Modi.
"The Congress is a sinking ship," Maneka Gandhi said.
"Nobody can now save the Congress. Corruption and scams have badly tarnished the party's image, and its leaders have constantly looted and cheated the nation all these years."
"Congress is in such a situation that no one, not even Rahul Gandhi, or his sister Priyanka, can save the party," said the BJP leader, widow of Indira Gandhi's younger son Sanjay, who was killed in a plane crash in New Delhi in June 1980.
"Rahul is no match for Modiji. It is like a battle between a lion and a bird. Modiji is an elected leader with huge experience, while Rahul has failed on all fronts. Obviously, he is no match for Modiji," Maneka Gandhi told TV news channel Headlines Today.
Maneka fell out with her mother-in-law Indira Gandhi in 1983, and formed the Rashtriya Sanjay Manch, which later merged with the main opposition party, the Janata Dal, in 1988.
She, along with her son Varun Gandhi, joined the BJP in 2004.
"The Congress party has looted the country in the past ten years. People are so fed up with Congress rule that they are not going to vote for it in the next elections," Maneka Gandhi said.
Asked about the likely announcement of Rahul Gandhi as leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha polls, she said: "It will make no difference who leads the pack of forty thieves."
Asked about Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's praise for Rahul's "outstanding potential", the BJP leader said: "I want to ask if the person who said all this has really served as the prime minister of the country. The whole country knows that both (Congress president) Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul have kept the reins of power in their own hands. So what difference will it make, who gets what responsibility."
Calling the Congress a party of bad people, Maneka said, "The party urgently needs to change its image and people's perception about it."
Commenting on reports that Rahul Gandhi's sister Priyanka would get a major role in the run-up to general elections this year, Maneka said: "I don't want to comment on her role."
She added: "Congress has been projecting Rahul Gandhi for the past ten years, but what happened? The situation is so much worse for the party that even Priyanka Gandhi's glamour can't save the Congress now."