Rahul takes on BJP, says Congress brought RTI, waived farm loans

With less than 72 hours to go before the campaigning for the November 4 Himachal Assembly polls closes, Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi chartered familiar territory when he took on the BJP in an "us versus them" speech that largely dwelt on how the BJP had opposed and stonewalled major people-centric initiatives just because they had been initiated by the Congress.

Addressing a well-attended rally at Ghumarwin, Gandhi took on the BJP over the issue of corruption. "They talk of corruption. Ask them who brought the RTI? Ask them who got the Jan Lokpal Bill defeated in the Rajya Sabha?" Humne nahin haraya... unhoney haraya," he said. "Jahan bhi humein bhrashtachar dikhta hai hum action lete hain. Have they taken any action? Ek shabd nahin kaha," he said, in an apparent reference to the corruption charges against BJP national president Nitin Gadkari.

Underlining how the UPA government had "waived farmer loans worth thousands of crores", Gandhi said: "The doors of the banks had closed on them. Rich people used to get bank loans easily, but the banks' doors were closed on crores of farmers. We waived their loans and benefitted these farmers."

"What did the BJP and the opposition say? When we talking of MNREGA in the Parliament, they started opposing it. We spoke of loan waiver, they asked where will you get the money from. We showed them how to get the money," Gandhi said, adding that now when the UPA was introducing FDI in retail to help farmers, the BJP was opposing it again.

"You please ask them. What were their views about FDI when they were in power at the Centre? They were not opposing it then. They wanted to bring it in. And they were wanting to bring in a far weaker bill on FDI. Now, just because Congress is doing it, the opposition is calling it wrong," he said.

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