BJP president Amit Shah on Sunday criticised the Congress for the “injustice” done to Gujarat during its rule, while starting the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra from Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s birthplace, Karamsad.
The second part of the Yatra, the BJP’s road show ahead of the Assembly elections in December, will be started from Mahatma Gandhi’s birthplace, Porbandar, on his birth anniversary on Monday.
“Recently, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi came to the State and questioned the Gujarat model of development. But I want to ask the Congress to explain why injustice was meted out to Gujarat generation after generation during the Congress regime,” Mr. Shah said.
The rally was marked by attempts by Patidar community members to disrupt it.
Mr. Shah cited instances of “injustice”, like Jawaharlal Nehru “sidelining” Sardar Patel, and Morarji Desai being denied the prime ministerial post during Indira Gandhi’s regime.
“People of Gujarat want to know why the Congress has inflicted injustice on the those who were from Gujarat,” Mr. Shah said.
He claimed that during the UPA regime, Gujarat was again treated unjustly as Congress president Sonia Gandhi was against the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Before the rally, Mr. Shah and Chief Minister Vijay Rupani paid tributes to Sardar Patel at his ancestral home.
The Gaurav Yatra is meant to highlight the achievements of the BJP government in the State.
PTI adds:
Mr. Shah also enumerated various achievements of the BJP-led governments in the State. He compared the situation in Gujarat in 1995, when the BJP wrested power from the Congress, and what the State had achieved till 2017 on yardsticks such as power generation, farm production, education, police, road infrastructure, among others.
“When Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister, he created a Gujarat development model which has today become a model for the entire country. This model is Gujarat’s pride,” he said.
He said Mr. Modi ensured 24X7 electricity, water through Narmada dam and investments through Vibrant Gujarat Summit.
The “Sonia-Manmohan Singh” government in UPA’s 10-year rule inflicted great injustice on Gujarat by holding up Narmada dam project, he alleged. But with Mr. Modi becoming the Prime Minister, he gave approval to increase height of the dam, the BJP president said.
“The gates [of the Narmada dam] are closed and water has started reaching till Rajasthan,” he said.
Mr. Shah said Gujarat got All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), bullet train, among others, after Mr. Modi became the Prime Minister.
The second leg of the Gujarat Gaurav Yatra will be launched by Mr. Shah on October 2 from Porbandar, the birth place of Mahatma Gandhi.
The yatra will go on till October 15. It will be held on two routes simultaneously.
Prime Minister Modi and Mr. Shah will remain present for the concluding ceremony of the yatra, the place for which is yet to be decided.
