Only the dishonest have to fear, says BJP

‘Sonia needn’t worry about govt.’s work’

The BJP on Tuesday rejected Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s charge that there was “fear” in the country under the Modi government. Ms. Gandhi had made these remarks on the third anniversary of the Modi government at a meeting of the Congress Working Committee (CWC) in New Delhi.

BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra invoked 1984 anti-Sikh riots and the Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi and said fear prevailed in those times, not now. “If there is fear now, then it is among the dishonest,” he said.

“Sonia Gandhi need not worry about the Modi government’s work. Due to its pro-poor policies, people have realised what they lost during the 10-year rule [of the UPA] and what they have got under the three-year rule [of the NDA]. They have shown their support to it often,” he said.

Targets Rahul

Targeting Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi over his reported remarks that he was reading holy Hindu scriptures to take on the RSS and the BJP, Mr. Patra said he needed to read such books to understand a party like the BJP, while people needed to read “book of scams” to understand the Congress.

“He is such a leader that he will read out even from a ration card if his ‘script writers’ gives it to him,” Mr. Patra said, and asked the CWC to be concerned about his future.

The BJP leader also attacked Congress leaders P. Chidambaram and Kapil Sibal for their criticism of the Army’s action to use a man as a “human shield” in Kashmir. He said the CWC should have sacked Mani Shankar Aiyar for “shamelessly laughing” at separatist leader S.A.S. Gilani’s alleged remarks that India was in control of Kashmir due to its Army.

With reference to the criticism of the CBI raids on the premises of NDTV owners, Mr. Patra said the government would not come in the way of enforcement agencies whether the matter involved one paise or ₹1,000.