Narendra Modi is 'anti-farmer' and 'anti-common man': Arvind Kejriwal

Ahmedabad: AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday accused Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi of being "anti-farmer" and "anti-common man" after police detained him briefly.

The former Delhi chief minister hit out at the BJP's prime ministerial candidate after his 30-minute detention at a police station in Radhanpur in north Gujarat.

The incident took place just hours after he began a four-day tour of Gujarat to test Modi's claims that the state was a model of development.

Arvind Kejriwal. File pic

"There is no development here," Kejriwal told the media and a large group of supporters even as several Modi backers waved black flags at him.

"Modi is anti-farmer, Modi is completely anti-common man," Kejriwal went on. "The only people who have benefitted in Gujarat are industrialists."

He said Modi was making exaggerated claims of developing Gujarat while addressing election rallies across the country and was rattled because he (Kejriwal) was "exposing the tall claims".

An Aam Aadmi Party leader told IANS that Kejriwal was detained allegedly on charges of violating the model code of conduct which came into effect after the Election Commission announced the Lok Sabha election schedule.

The Kejriwal aide said the AAP founder leader was on his way when police stopped the motorcade.

Kejriwal, the aide said, asked the police why he was being detained since he was not addressing any election rally -- which would need official permission -- and his car had no speaker.

"Still they took us to the police station," the aide said. "We were kept in the police station for half hour and then let off."

Kejriwal has said that he will tour Gujarat for four days in order to check the chief minister's claims about the state's all-round economic progress.

Kejriwal had said before leaving for Gujarat he would "expose" Modi if he found his claims to be fake.