Ahmedabad: Two months after she made her formal debut into the Congress, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a rally in his home state, in a way that those who had written off her arrival in the Congress as the party’s Brahmastra against Modi to do a rethink. Priyanka, who had energized the party when she was inducted as the UP east Congress general secretary in January, did not disappoint with her sharp questions. “Where is the Rs 15 lakh that was supposed to be deposited in your bank account? Where are the two crore jobs? Where is the safety of women?”
The ‘Jan Sankalp Rally’ organised by the party at Ahmedabad witnessed a huge gathering (one lakh).
Ms. Priyanka told the gathering, “You have a weapon. It is your vote with which you can make the decision. This is the weapon that will not harm anyone, but will strengthen you. I appeal to you to make the right decision and ask the right questions. In the coming two months, they will try to divert your attention but you keep on asking the right question. Decide on what is important for you. Your awareness is patriotism. This election is nothing less than the independence movement.”
Party president Rahul Gandhi started his speech mentioning how four Supreme Court judges had to go to public. He said, “Normally people go to courts for justice, but we live in such a situation where the judges have go to the public.” He raised issues of unemployment and farmers’ distress. He attacked PM Modi and made allegations on Rafale.
It is significant that she invoked Mahatma Gandhi during her speech, saying how touched she was listening to his prayers and bhajans.
Although her brother, Congress President Rahul Gandhi, and mother, UPA chairperson, Sonia Gandhi, were present, she was the cynosure of the crowd which chanted “Indira Zindabad”.
She did not name Modi, but left no doubt on whom she was referring to, when she said during her short speech, “Hatred is being spread by some people, but this nation is built on love and brotherhood. Our fitrat (nature) is to seek the truth and to blow away winds of hate with love.” Institutions were being destroyed, she added.
Priyanka said women security, employment, and agrarian crisis were the main issues on which the just-announced Lok Sabha polls would be fought adding that voters should not get sidetracked by “meaningless issues”.
