External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid on Tuesday took a dig at BJP’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi, saying it was not the size of crowd but the substance of a speech that was important, and that the former needed to go back to school, take lessons in history and sharpen his skills in coordination of faculties before delivering public speeches.
Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function at the CII, the Minister said Mr. Modi’s speeches were replete with inaccuracies displaying lack of coordination between his thoughts and speeches.
Mr. Khurshid quipped there was disconnect between what he wanted to say from what he spoke. “It appears he needs to go back to school and brush his history up,” he said. “He doesn’t know where Takshila is and flounders while naming the founding fathers of his party.” Picking holes in Mr. Modi’s usage of words, Mr. Khurshid said he appeared to be confused between “shehzada” and “sahebzada” using one for the other. Taking umbrage at the BJP’s observation that Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi’s charisma was on the decline and the turnout at his rallies poor, Mr. Khurshid said the BJP should mind its own business instead of being bothered about the strength of the Congress’s rallies.
He wondered why the BJP was concerned on this issue when it was able to manage large crowds and spent their time. “They should not be concerned why people are not attending our rallies. They should do their job and let us do our work.”