Headlines
Rahul Gandhi uttered 'white lie': Ravi Shankar Prasad
New Delhi, April 19
Accusing Congress
vice-president Rahul Gandhi of "insulting the most popular mandate" by
terming the BJP-led NDA government as "anti-people", the BJP on Sunday
said the Congress leader uttered a "white lie" while addressing a rally
at Ramlia Maidan here.
Addressing a press conference after the
Congress's Kissan-Khet Majdoor rally, BJP senior leader and union
Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said: "Rahul Gandhi needs to understand
that India is no monarchy and the popular choice is the BJP."
Responding
to Gandhi's charges against the central government allegedly making
changes in the Land Acquisition Act of 2013, the BJP leader asked "why
is Rahul Gandhi stating a white lie by saying that amendments have been
been done to favour industrialists".
"The amendments have been
done to favour the farmers," he said adding that Rahul Gandhi spoke a
lot about the Gujarat model but "we want to ask Sonia and Rahul as to
what is the Vadra model of development and land acquisition".
"Don't
you need land for canals and for Indira Awas Yojna... and if the UPA's
land act was perfect, why was it being opposed by their own chief
ministers," Prasad asked.
"Why had Congress chief ministers
opposed their own land act," he asked, adding that the prime minister
had made clear that first government land would be acquired. "Why such a
lie," he wondered.
"Rahul Gandhi should apologise for insulting
the most popular mandate. We condemn this brazen contempt against the
popular mandate," said the BJP leader.
On Gandhi's remark that
Modi, while in Canada, had insulted the country by saying that he was
clearing the mess of the past fifty years, Prasad said: "Did the 2G
scam, coal scam not happen during the Congress regime?"
Prasad
also took a dig at Rahul Gandhi's going on leave, saying that someone
(Modi) goes abroad to raise the prestige of the country while others
(Rahul) to contemplate.