New Delhi, Sep 12 (PTI): The BJP today slammed Rahul Gandhi as a "failed dynast" and failed politician after the Congress vice president defended dynastic politics during a public event in the United States.

Within hours of Gandhi's speech, Union minister Smriti Irani blasted him at a press conference, saying his admission that the Congress had turned arrogant since 2012 was a reflection on Sonia Gandhi's leadership.

"A failed dynast today chose to speak about his failed political journey in the US," Irani said at a BJP press conference.

In his speech to students at University of California at Berkeley, Gandhi also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi, accusing him of divisive politics and causing "tremendous damage" to India's economy with "reckless and dangerous" decisions like demonetisation and GST.

"The fact that Rahul Gandhi chose to belittle the prime minister is not a surprise but expected... It is an indication of his failed strategy. The people of the country where he leads a political party no longer support him so he is expressing his pain abroad," she said.

During his interaction, Gandhi had argued that India is being run by dynasties and cited the examples of the Samajwadi Party, DMK and even Bollywood. "So that's how India runs. So don't get after me because that's how India is run," he said.