AHMEDABAD: In her first rally in the state in five years, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra addressed a public gathering in Valsad’s Dharampur town on Saturday. This marks her first visit to South Gujarat. The last visit by a member of the Gandhi family to the area was by Rahul Gandhi during the Bharat Jodo yatra for the 2022 state assembly elections, near Vansda.
Gandhi criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi for allegedly spreading misinformation and neglecting the welfare of ordinary citizens. Targeting Modi's governance style and election strategies, she referred to him as 'Gyani Uncle' during her address, drawing a comparison to an authoritative figure imparting wisdom at a wedding ceremony.
"The Gyaani Uncle is in a position of authority and yet he is spouting 'bakwas' (nonsense)," she remarked.
She questioned the validity of Modi's statements, specifically his contentious comments regarding the Congress' alleged plans to confiscate gold from households using X-ray machines.
"His statements are filled with absurdity, as if he expects people to blindly accept them as undeniable truth. We have been in power for 55 years. Can any government actually enforce a scheme where an x-ray machine scans the amount of jewellery in your house and forcibly takes it away from you? Is it possible," she said.
"Do you trust this Gyani Uncle? Can we rely on anything that comes out of this uncle's mouth when he addresses the public? Is he truly the Prime Minister of this country," she questioned.
Gandhi voiced her concerns regarding the Modi government's approach to addressing sexual harassment and violence against women, citing incidents such as the Hathras case and the reported harassment of women wrestlers by a BJP MP.
She also accused the PM of undermining democracy, stating, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi is weakening democracy and targeting the opposition. He accuses us of corruption while portraying himself as the sole epitome of purity. Modi has amassed immense wealth and wields boundless power, aided by an extensive network of influence and a vast media empire. In contrast, we are championing boundless truth, boundless justice, and boundless democracy."
She added, "He has hurled insults at our family relentlessly—mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, great-grandfather, brother,husband—spared no one. But that doesn't faze us. Our chests are not measured in inches; they are made of iron."
