In an apparent retort to Rahul Gandhi’s suit-boot ki sarkar jibe , the BJP has claimed the Congress President wore a jacket worth USD 995 at a concert organised by his party in the poll-bound State of Meghalaya while being “indifferent” to the woes of people.
In a tweet, the BJP alleged the Congress government in Meghalaya was mired in corruption. It said instead of attending a musical event, Mr. Gandhi should have given a report card of the State government.
“So @OfficeOfRG, soot(pun intended!)-boot ki sarkar with ’black’ money fleeced from Meghalayan State exchequer by rampant corruption? Instead of singing away our woes, you could have given a report card of your inefficient govt in Meghalaya! Your indifference mocks us!,” the BJP’s Meghalaya unit tweeted.
The party’s State unit also tweeted an image of a jacket similar to the one Mr. Gandhi wore having a price tag of USD 995 (little over Rs 63,000).
The tweet, suggesting that the jacket worn by Mr. Gandhi was bought with black money, drew a sharp reaction from Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury, who alleged the BJP was leading a “ suit-boot ki sarkar ” at the Centre, and had no moral authority to question Mr. Gandhi.
She said the saffron party was “frustrated” due to Mr. Gandhi’s “rising popularity”.
Ms. Chowdhury accused the Modi government of being “idle”, and said it should rather focus on issues such as the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, and rising prices of fuel and vegetables.
“Their frustration is directly proportionate to the rising popularity of Rahul Gandhi. Rahul Gandhi connects with the young. So, this idle and suit-boot ki sarkar has no right to talk about it,” she said.
“Those who wove own name on suit, do they have any moral authority to question Rahul Gandhi’s jacket? How do they know the rate of the jacket? I will show the jacket can be bought at Rs 700. What will they say then?” she asked.
Mr. Gandhi had mocked Prime Minister Modi with his “ suit-boot ki sarkar ” jibe when he wore a suit with his name finely embroidered on the stripes for a meeting with the then US President Barack Obama. The suit was later auctioned and bought for over ₹4.3 crore by a Surat businessman.
Mr. Gandhi is in Meghalaya to campaign for the party for the upcoming Assembly polls.
He had attended the concert in Shillong yesterday, apparently to reach out to the young voters.
Dressed in blue denim trousers and a black jacket, he urged the youth to love and respect each other to make the country strong.
