Centre leading country towards Sri Lanka-like ruin: Gehlot hits out at Modi government

JAIPUR: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday said that the Centre is taking the country towards a Sri Lanka-like economic breakdown with its brand of nationalism.

"In Sri Lanka today, people do not have food because there too attention was diverted in the name of nationalism and opposition towards minorities. Modi government is trying to take India in the same direction," Gehlot said in a tweet.

He said that BJP is confident that no matter how much inflation rises, it will win elections through religious polarisation.

"But all of you should prepare to give a befitting reply to BJP in Rajasthan in 2023 and Lok Sabha elections in 2024. The BJP has to be defeated in Rajasthan," he said.

Gehlot said that patriotism is in the heart of every Indian.

He said that people have reposed faith in the Nehru-Gandhi family because of the "sacrifices" made by the family.

He said that Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, country's first Prime Minister, was imprisoned for more than 10 years for the independence of the country.

"Indira ji and Rajiv ji sacrificed their lives for this country. No person from Gandhi-Nehru family has held any constitutional post in last 30 years. Congress President Sonia Gandhi also relinquished the post of Prime Minister in 2004," he said.

Congress party believes in the leadership of the Gandhi-Nehru family and if the sitting Prime Minister takes a dig at this, it is against the dignity of the post of prime minister.

"He tries to insult Nehruji, but Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not utter a word on the contribution made by former prime ministers and their martyrdom. The whole country knows this," Gehlot said.

The CM said that from "Achhe din aayenge" the time has come when people have started asking "Where did the good days go?" Before 2014 election, BJP leaders used to ask people to vote for it as inflation was high but now petrol, diesel, cooking gas, vegetables, oil, clothes, milk, medicine, mobile-TV recharge, highway toll tax have all become expensive under the BJP rule, Gehlot said.

He said that the country's debt has increased two-and-a-half times in seven years of the Modi government.

In 2014, there was a debt of about Rs 57 lakh crores, which increased to Rs 136 lakh crores in 2022, he pointed out.

He also criticised the government over the rising unemployment and crime.

Gehlot highlighted his work saying that in Rajasthan, the government has made medicines, treatment free, contrasting it with situation in other states, saying that there "people are not even able to buy medicines".

Petrol has become costlier by Rs 27 and diesel by Rs 25 in the state in last one year.