Jaipur, Nov 16 (IANS): Addressing public rallies in poll-bound Rajasthan on Thursday, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath hit out at the Gandhi family, saying that "whenever there is a calamity in the country, some people go to Italy while some come to Jaipur".
Adityanath's indirect jibe was trageted at Rahul Gandhi, who has visited his grandmother's place in Italy several times in the past, as well as Sonia Gandhi, who is currently in Jaipur on the advice of doctors due to severe air quality in Delhi.
Commenting on the November 25 Assembly elections in Rajasthan, Adityanath said the Congress government will be ousted from power by the people of the desert state.
"Congress is the root cause of corruption and hooliganism in the country. The only solution to this is only the BJP and (Narendra) Modi."
The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister addressed public rallies in Etawah (Kota), Bundi and Kekri (Ajmer) on Thursday, during which he also held the Congress responsible for stopping the construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya.
He said: "Congress plays with faith. We used to raise the slogan that 'Ram Lalla we will come, we will build the temple there', and the Congress leaders used to laugh and ask how can we will build the Ram temple."
"We then raised the slogan that 'Ramlala, we will come and first remove the disputed structure'. After that we raised the slogan of building the temple there itself," Adityanath added.
While addressing the public rally in Kekri, the Uttar Pradesh CM said: "When I was coming to Kekri by road, potholes were visible at many places. At some places, it was not even clear whether there was a pothole on the road or a road on the pothole.
"When a corrupt government works, nepotism is bound to dominate. Similar mafias were present in Uttar Pradesh before 2017. We brought bulldozers to drive them out."
He added: "The Congress government in Rajasthan follows the policy of appeasement and avoids spending money on religious places. It imposes restrictions to ensure that money is not spent on religious places.
"Get rid of 'Sagar' tax. There should be a corruption-free system. To provide employment opportunities, cooperate in forming a double-engine government in Rajasthan."
Sagar is the name of one of the ministers in Ashok Gehlot's Cabinet.
"Congress used to say that Muslims have the first right on the resources of the country, whereas Modi ji said that the youth and poor of the country have the first right on these resources. That's why Modi ji coined the slogan 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas'.
"Modi ji built houses for four crore poor people, got 12 crore toilets built, got 10 crore connections under Ujjwala scheme, while 50 crore people received the benefits of Ayushman scheme. Congress could also have done all this, but they did not do so. Modi ji did all this and this is Ramrajya," Adityanath added.
"When Ram Lalla will be seated by the efforts of Modi ji on January 22, everyone from here will have to come to Ayodhya. That's why I have come here to invite you," he said.
Reiterating his statement that there will be a change in the government in Rajasthan, Adityanath said, "The Congress got the longest tenure to rule Rajasthan, but no work was done by the party. The present Gehlot government will be known for five years of chaos and infighting.
"This government will be known as a barrier to development, whereas the previous Vasundhara Raje government worked continuously. Therefore, there will be change in government in Rajasthan this time."
"Hooliganism, corruption, terrorism and mafia rule in the country are the contributions of Congress. BJP is the only solution to the country's problems. Modi ji and Amit Shah have abolished Article 370, the root of terrorism, forever, whereas Congress governments only committed atrocities," Adityanath said.