“Your arrogance will be crushed in the coming elections,” Aam Aadmi Party leader Kumar Vishwas said on Sunday as he challenged Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on his home turf in Uttar Pradesh.
Addressing a ‘Jan Vishwas’ rally for which the party requested additional security, Mr. Vishwas, who is tipped to contest the general election from here, attacked the Congress for its dynasty politics. “It’s time to ensure the win of a naukar (commoner/servant) this time,” he told the crowd on the Ramlila ground. This was the party’s first rally in the State where it intends fighting all 80 seats. The Amethi seat is currently held by Mr. Gandhi.
Taking a dig at the Congress leader’s visit to a Dalit’s house, he said: “It is not enough to eat at a Dalit’s house. Have you cared about the rest of the Dalits?”
The AAP leader blamed the Congress for the poor infrastructure in the district. “Only 20 per cent of the roads were constructed under the Centre’s scheme,” he pointed out. “We have nothing against you. We elected you in good faith. But we ask why you haven’t asked a single question about Amethi’s development in Parliament?”
Mr. Vishwas also took a jibe at Congress president Sonia Gandhi for her frequent foreign trips for medical treatment. Referring to her as “Mataji,” he asked: “How can you hand over Amethi and the country to your son when you don’t even trust the sons of this soil (Indian doctors) with your health?”
Black flags shown
Earlier, on his way to Amethi, Mr. Vishwas was shown black flags by a group protesting against his purported remarks against a religious event. Stones and eggs were also thrown at two buses carrying AAP supporters. The incident comes a day after a youth disrupted his press conference and hurled an egg at him in Lucknow.
Mocking the incidents, Mr. Vishwas said: “Do we require a visa or passport to enter Amethi? The more you hit us, the more black flags you show us, the more our votes will increase and the larger will be the margin of our win.”
On the recent string of attacks on the AAP, Mr. Vishwas said: “The entire world will see how much arrogance a family has. We will crush that.” He stated that his party did not want to fight the elections but was compelled to do so by the Congress’ unrelenting arrogance.
The poet-turned-politician, who intermittently recited poems, also hit back at Union Minister Beni Prasad Verma for dismissing him as a joker. “A joker is a good person. He makes people smile. He works hard. At least, he doesn’t sell his country,” Mr. Vishwas said.
AAP national spokesperson Sanjay Singh said his party was not intimidated by the “politics of ande, goonde and dande.” Journalist Ashutosh who recently joined the party, addressed the crowd.