Hitting back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for his recent comments about the city exemplifying a “culture of chaos”, Congress President Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday, said the comments undermined everything that Bengaluru had accomplished till date.
The Congress leader, who toured the city on Wednesday, said that by undermining the city’s successes the Prime Minister was not only insulting founder Nadaprabhu Kempe Gowda but was also negating the efforts of the previous generations in building the city.
The PM had, during a recent visit, said that Bengaluru had become a “valley of sin” and that it had been reduced to “garbage city” the “crime capital”.
“Did the city not exist before Narendra Modi came to power?” asked Mr. Gandhi on Wednesday.
Mr. Gandhi visited several neighbourhoods, including Russell Market in Shivajinagar, C.V. Raman Nagar and Hebbal. He also interacted with garment workers in Koramangala.
Citing examples of the Nirav Modi scam, the Kathua rape case and the suicide of Rohit Vemula, Mr. Gandhi reiterated in his speeches that the Prime Minister had been silent on crucial issues.
Commenting on the governance of the BJP-led government, he alleged that Mann ki Baat was only for the PM.
“If women do Mann ki Baat , the RSS will harass them,” he said. Mr. Modi wants to impose one thought across the country and he wants only “RSS Raj”, he alleged
Mr. Gandhi sought blessings at Dodda Ganapathi temple in Basavanagudi. His tour also included a visit to the historical Dargah Hazrath Tawakkal Mastan Shah Saherwadi in Cottonpet.
Later in the evening, the Congress president visited the Dr. Rajkumar Samadhi.
On account of the roadshow, there were traffic snarls in several parts of the city where the convoy passed.
Residents disappointed
Residents of Indiranagar, part of ‘I Change Indiranagar’, were disappointed when they failed to get an opportunity to interact with Mr. Gandhi. Indiranagar RWA member Rajkumar Pillai said they had tried in vain to get an interaction.
Residents wanted to raise their concerns about civic issues faced by them in the locality. Incidentally, the area is named after former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
