Close your eyes,listen to Rahul,you hear Rajiv: PC

He was referring to Rahul’s speech at the party’s plenary session on Sunday in which he had sought to re-define the aam aadmi disengaging him/her from any socio-economic profile. Rahul had said that aam aadmi is the one who does not have a “connection” to the system — and so could be a professional or a businessman or a bureaucrat or a carpenter.

“Millions are not connected to our economic system not because they do not want to but (they) have no opportunity to,” said Chidambaram. “Why is the per capita income so low for the bottom 20 per cent of India? Imagine (if) we heeded the call of Rahul Gandhi…imagine every child in school vaccinated and inoculated,imagine leaving school with skill…imagine everyone out of college with a job,” he said.

The Home Minister then slammed the BJP saying that it was “angry” with and “envious” of the Congress because of the ruling party’s “electability” and “re-electability”.

“To the BJP I would say,aap ka number nahi aayega before the decade or even after. For the next 10 years,we would be in the government,” he said to thunderous applause from 15,000 party delegates gathered from across the country.

“It is the Congress party alone which can govern the country for five years and go back to the people and ask for a mandate and get re-elected. The BJP got one chance and failed. The BJP is envious of the Congress party. It is the Congress party which knows how to govern and how to get re-elected and govern the country for second term,” he said.

Chidambaram had suggestions for both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and party president Sonia Gandhi.

“The Prime Minister should call upon each minister to give a quarterly account of what his or her ministry has done on each of the points (suggested in the party’s economic resolution). In every six months,the Congress President should call the government to give an account what has been done in regard to the decision,” he said.

Referring to insurgents in the North-East and Naxalites in central India,the Home Minister said he was willing to make peace with all those who have differences with the government “provided they abjure violence,come and take responsibility,share power,and participate in the path of nation-building.”

Attacking the BJP,Chidambaram said between 1998 and 2004,when the NDA was in power,the highest growth rate in any year the government could deliver was 6.4 per cent. “Note my words,the highest growth rate the NDA could deliver was 6.4 per cent. In contrast to this,during the Congress party-led UPA government,the lowest growth rate we have delivered in any year was when there was international financial crisis,and even in that year,we delivered 6.7 per cent growth,” he said.

He said during the NDA rule,the average growth rate in five years was 5.8 per cent,while the UPA’s

average was 8.5 per cent. He said in UPA-II,the first year began with 7.2 per cent growth and in the first half of the second year,it was 8.9 per cent. “I have no doubt in my mind that the second half will be even better. At the end we will deliver 9 per cent,” he said.