New Delhi, May 9 (IANS): The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday accused the Congress party of bringing down the level of the election campaign by diverting from the issue of development.

Talking to the media here, Union Minister and senior BJP leader Nitin Gadkari said: "The election should have been fought on the work done by the BJP-led NDA government. But the Congress had brought down the level of the election campaign by abusing the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi)."

He said in total, the Prime Minister has been abused 56 times.

Taking a jibe at the NYAY scheme of the Congress, Gadkari said the party which could not eliminate poverty in its 60-year rule was now talking of eliminating poverty with the NYAY scheme.

Gadkari said the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government launched several schemes for the poor including the Ujjwala Yojana.

Crediting his government for focusing on development in its five-year term, Gadkari said it was the NDA government which worked on cleaning the Ganga and building roads from two km per day to 30 km per day.

Replying to a question on the Congress blaming the BJP for Rajiv Gandhi's death, Gadkari said that instead of blaming the saffron party, the Congress should know when Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated, there was a Congress-led government at the Centre. "How can the BJP be held responsible," Gadkari asked.