"Congress shehzada mocked my Dwarka pooja for vote bank politics": PM Modi takes dig at Rahul Gandhi

Amroha (Uttar Pradesh), Apr 19: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday hit back at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after the Wayanad MP had mocked the Prime Minister's visit to Dwarka where he dived into the Arabian Sea off the coast of Gujarat to perform a puja.

Prime Minister said that "Congress' Shehzada mocked his pooja at the holy site for vote bank politics".

Addressing an election rally in Amroha, Prime Minister Modi said, "Lord Krishna went to Gujarat from here. I was born there and now I am in Uttar Pradesh. Kashi made me their MP. When I went to Dwarka, with full devotion I offered prayers but Congress' Shehzada said there is nothing as such to offer prayers. He is insulting the thousands-year-old tradition and our faith just for his vote bank politics. He said nothing lies under the seas. And I want to ask those who called themselves Yaduvanshi in Bihar, if you are a true Yaduvanshi then how are you sitting with a party that is insulting it."

Earlier, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took potshots at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for performing an underwater puja in the remains of the ancient submerged city of Lord Krishna's Dwarka earlier in February, alleging that issues like inflation and unemployment are "not being discussed".

"The issues of farmers, inflation, unemployment, and agniveers are the most prominent in the country today, but on TV channels, you will never see discussion on these issues. Instead, TV channels show Modi ji all 24 hours; at times he goes under the sea to do a puja and a TV camera goes with him, then he takes a flight on a seaplane," he said.

Slamming the previous state governments in Uttar Pradesh for "ignoring problems of farmers", the Prime Minister said that the BJP government is working day and night to ease the lives of farmers.

"This area of Amroha and Western Uttar Pradesh is also known for its hardworking farmers. During Congress, SP, and BSP governments, here the problems of the farmers were neither heard nor seen nor cared for. But the BJP government is working day and night to reduce the problems of the farmers," he said.

"The sugarcane farmers of Amroha can never forget how much they were harassed earlier for payments. But today, along with record purchases of sugarcane, record payments are also being made in the state," he added.

PM Modi further took a jibe at Akhilesh Yadav and Rahul Gandhi saying that "film starring two princes is going on in UP which has already been rejected".

"Every time these people set out to ask for votes from the people of UP carrying the basket of nepotism, corruption and appeasement. In their campaign, these people leave no opportunity to attack our faith," he said.

He also said that previous state governments kept cheating people who belonged to reserved classes.

"Earlier governments in our country kept cheating SC/ST and OBC in the name of social justice. The dream that Jyotiba Phule had, the dream that Baba Saheb Ambedkar had, the dream which Chaudhary Charan Singh had, now Modi is fulfilling that dream of social justice," he said.

He also appealed to the voters to participate in elections.

"Today, the first phase of #LokSabhaElections2024 elections is taking place. This is a big day for the festival of democracy. I want to appeal to all the voters to use their rights and cast their votes," he said.

Meanwhile, the world's largest democratic exercise kicked off in the country today, with the first phase of polling in 102 constituencies across 21 states and Union Territories.

This Lok Sabha election, to be conducted from April 19 to June 1, is set to be the second longest polling exercise in the country's electoral history after the first general election, which was held over five months between September 1951 and February 1952.