Congress hails Kejriwal for exposing Modi's development 'myth'

New Delhi: Congress on Thursday hailed AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal's tour of Gujarat contending that there is another voice in the country exposing the "deficiencies" and development "myth" of Narendra Modi.

"If AAP, a voice other than Congress has been showing the deficiencies of Gujarat, exposing hype and myth of Gujarat. We welcome that Kejriwal is going to villages of Gujarat... Kejriwal is doing a job that media should also be doing. If Kejriwal is going there and finding out the truth of Modi's' claims, we completely welcome that," party spokesperson Shashi Tharoor told reporters at the AICC meeting here.

"...If Kejriwal's antics have helped draw the attention, we welcome it. We welcome Indians being well-informed before casting their votes. We want the Indian voter to be aware of the reality," he said.

The party, however, condemned the clashes between BJP and AAP workers yesterday saying it is a case of "politics of violence" countering the "forces of anarchy". "It was a revelation to the nation about the kind of alternative politics that is being talked about," the Union Minister said.

AAP workers had on Wednesday fought pitched battles with BJP activists outside the saffron party headquarters in Delhi and Lucknow hours after party leader Arvind Kejriwal was detained briefly in Gujarat. Kejriwal, who set out on a four-day tour of Gujarat on Wednesday, alleged there is no evidence of "development" in the state as claimed by its Chief Minister and BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate, Modi, and people there are unhappy.

Tharoor seconded Kejriwal's claims saying the situation in Gujarat is "utterly condemnable". 

Tharoor said it is good if someone exposes the "reality behind the myth" that "Modi's marketeers" are propagating. "Our main concern is that Modi is pretending about things, which are not supported by facts," he said with reference to performance of Gujarat government on various social indices like malnutrition among children and development paradigms. He, however, made it clear that Congress does not support the political methodology of Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party.

"We have anarchy versus violence. That is not an encouraging choice...if grabbing media attention requires violence, Congress is not going to do that...this is what happens, when politics of violence counters the forces of anarchy," Tharoor said, adding, law will take its own course in incidents of violence. Asserting that Congress remains strong in Gujarat, Tharoor said that "no one can take away Congress' space there".

To another question, he said that Congress has been in flight for last ten years and covered a long distance. "We are ready to continue to be in the flight. Nation has to decide if they want us to continue. People will have to decide to refuel the flight," he said.