Rahul Gandhi: Cries of help are of those seeking freedom from tyranny

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi

New Delhi: Congress president Rahul Gandhi hit back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday over his "bachao, bachao" swipe at the Opposition, saying the cries of help were of people "begging" to be freed from "your tyranny and incompetence". Gandhi's attack came a day after Modi, taking a dig at the Opposition rally organised by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee in Kolkata, said the BJP had only one MLA in West Bengal, "but still they are so afraid of us, because we follow the path of truth, that they have gathered parties from across the country and are crying 'bachao, bachao, bachao' (save us)".

"Your Highness, The cries for help are the cries of millions of unemployed youth; of farmers in distress; of oppressed Dalits & Adivasis; of persecuted minorities; of small businessmen in ruin; begging to be freed from your tyranny & incompetence. In 100 days they will be free," Gandhi said in a tweet. Unfazed by the Opposition's show of unity in Kolkata on Saturday, Modi dismissed it on Sunday as an alliance of corruption, negativity and instability, saying while those parties had "money power", the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had "people's power".

"The Opposition has 'dhanshakti' (money power), we have 'janshakti' (people's power)," he said, addressing the BJP's booth-level workers from the Lok Sabha constituencies of Kolhapur, Hatkanangle, Madha and Satara in Maharashtra and South Goa through video-conference. Reacting to the prime minister's remarks, Congress spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi slammed the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) as a "thugbandhan" and said the ruling coalition would be rejected by the people of the country in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls. On Modi's scathing criticism of the opposition parties, she alleged that the person saying all this was involved in corruption and that dynasty politics was being promoted in his own party.

Modi also said the Opposition was staring at defeat in the forthcoming general election and was looking for excuses ahead of their impending loss and thus, was vilifying EVMs. Chaturvedi told reporters that questions were raised over electronic voting machines (EVMs) earlier as well. During the Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls, EVMs were found in buses and in Rajasthan, they were found on the road and in hotel rooms, she pointed out.

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