Lok Sabha elections: PM Modi not with farmers, says Priyanka Gandhi

PULPALLY/NILAMBUR: AICC general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday accused the Narendra Modi government of showing disrespect to farmers and said there has never been a ‘weaker government’ and ‘weaker Prime Minister’ than the incumbent ones.



Addressing a massive rally of farmers at the agrarian distress hotspot of Pulpally in Wayanad, where Congress president Rahul Gandhi is contesting, Priyanka also came down heavily on the central government for ignoring farmers even when the last year’s floods wreaked unprecedented havoc in the state.

“It is a matter of shame that a government, which could spare Rs 3 lakh crore to waive the loans of big corporates, did not have either the intention or didn’t gather the resources to give relief to those who are in dire needs like you,” she told the farmers who had gathered in large numbers at the Seetha Devi Lava Kusa temple grounds. Priyanka said the BJP has been raking up its own version of nationalism during the elections to divide people and to divert attention from its failure in fulfilling the promises given to people.

“When you come to election rallies and you speak of Pakistan and not about what you are going to do for your people, is that nationalism?” she asked.

After the meeting, she walked into the crowd and inquired about the problems faced by farmers and met the widows of farmers who had committed suicide following crop loss and piling up of debts.

Adressing a rally in

Nilambur

, Priyanka said Modi visited his constituency Varanasi only for big meetings and he did not visit even a single village in the constituency during his regime. In UP, farmers are in deep distress and pain. Government had promised support to them to double their income but none of the promises were kept. There is no much difference in the state of farmers in Wayanad, she said.

“We cannot see PM’s photograph with common people of India, but with many world leaders. We can also see him eating biryani in Pakistan,” she said. Priyanka requested people to choose the Congress in the present elections citing various welfare programmes of the party to be implemented if it comes to power. She offered a separate budget for farmers and extinction of MNREGS programme, women empowerment programmes.