New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president J P Nadda on Friday, November 18, 2022, attacked Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his ongoing Bharat Jodo Yatra, and alleged that the opposition party can only break the country and not unite it. He was addressing an election rally in Navsari town of south Gujarat for BJP candidate Rakesh Desai. Polling for Navsari seat will be held on December 1 in the first phase in the poll-bound state.
"I wonder if Congress has embarked on Bharat Jodo Yatra or Bharat Todo Yatra. Their leaders are saying unite India. But what do they do in real life? Their leader Rahul Gandhi went to JNU in Delhi and supported those who shout slogans in favour of Afzal Guru, the mastermind behind the Parliament attack," Nadda said.
"When Rahul Gandhi was in JNU in support of those who raised such slogans, some people also raised the slogan 'Bharat Tere Tukde Honge, Insha Allah Insha Allah'. Your (Rahul Gandhi's) statement yesterday on freedom fighter Veer Savarkar was also condemnable. It shows they (Congress) can only break the country, not unite it," Nadda alleged.
Brushing aside the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) as a "new party", Nadda said the Arvind Kejriwal-led outfit lost its deposit on 349 of the 350 seats it fought in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls.
"Mark my words, they will lose their deposit on all the 67 seats they fought in the recent Himachal Pradesh polls," he asserted.
Nadda claimed the BJP worked on "mission" mode (for development), while other parties worked for "commission" (kickbacks). Hailing the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi during the coronavirus pandemic, Nadda said India was able to develop two vaccines in just nine months and secured the entire population against the pandemic.
"We even sent vaccines to nearly 100 countries, including 38 countries free of cost. Now, India has become a country of givers and not takers," said Nadda.
Against one All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) being built under first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru, 15 AIIMS are being set up under Modi, including one in Rajkot in Gujarat. Gujarat will see polls on December 1 and 5, while the counting of votes will take place on December 8.
