Jasdan by-poll in Gujarat historic, vital for existence of Congress: Navjot Sidhu
TNN Bureau. Updated: 12/18/2018 7:49:45 PM
National
Jasdan (Gujarat), Dec 18 (UNI) Cricketer turned Politician and Minister in the Congress government of Punjab, Navjot Singh Sidhu on Tuesday said that the Jasdan assembly by-poll in Gujarat was a 'historic election' in which both the existence of Congress party and prestige of its president Rahul Gandhi were at stake.
Addressing a last minute election rally here, Sidhu also took a jibe at PM Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and other leaders of his former party BJP.
He said that after victory in MP, Chattisgarh and Rajasthan, the win in Jasdan, a known Congress bastion would be a major boost for the party.
'This is a historic election which would decide the existence of the Congress party. The prestige of Rahul Gandhi is also at stake in the election,' the Congress leader said in his own typical style.
He said that BJP and PM Modi were making several false promises even as several earlier promises were still unfulfilled.
Sidhu alleged that BJP was working for rich and Industrialists. 'It has waived Rs 45000 crore of Ambani and Rs one lakh crore of Adani and thousand of crores of other Industrialists but it has no feeling for poor farmers. Farmers are kings but the BJP has turned them in to beggars. Now that BJP has smelt its imminent defeat in Jasdan, it was trying to give a hollow lollipop to farmers in the form of Rs 650 crore electricity bill due waiver,' he claimed.
He said that BJP despite being in power in Gujarat for more than 22 years has not waived the farmer's loan while Rahul Gandhi did so within 22 minutes after the declaration of election results in MP, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan. 'In the next four moths the bad days are going and Rahul Gandhi is coming and then I promise on his behalf that there won't be even a single penny of debt on Gujarat farmer's too. I request you all to not accept the temptation of wine and money and vote for Congress as there is so much at stake in this historic bypoll. It will also decide about the existence of Congress,' the Punjab minister said.
In his own style he also threw several challenges to the BJP leadership and said that the way BJP was caring only for rich and Industrialists he wonders whether it was dancing to their tunes. He also raised the issues like demonetization, GST, Rafale deal etc to hit out at the BJP. He also questioned as to why the BJP government was not declaring the names of those who had stashed black money of Rs 90 lakh crores outside the country.
Notably, December 20 by poll is necessitated due to resignation of five time Congress MLA Kunvarji Bavaliya in July this year. He had resigned from the party and the seat to join ruling BJP after which he was inducted in Rupani cabinet. Jasdan is seen as a Congress bastion where the party has so far lost just once. Bavaliya is now BJP candidate from the seat. The counting would be done on December 23.