Modi attacks Congress on graft, security of women

New Delhi, Dec 1  Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi Sunday attacked the Congress on issues of corruption and security of women in the national capital.

He said people of Delhi should remember “Nirbhaya” while going to vote for the assembly polls Dec 4 and asserted that the city was not safe for its “mothers and sisters”.

Addressing a rally at Ambedkar Nagar, in south Delhi, Modi asked people not to forget the “rape capital” tag associated with the national capital when they vote.

“It (Delhi) has earned a bad name as the rape capital. When you vote, do not forget this. Remember Nirbhaya for a while,” Modi said.

Nirbhaya was the name given by a section of the media to the young woman who was brutally gang-raped in the capital December last and later died. The incident led to nation-wide protests.

Modi also referred to incidents of rape against minor children in the national capital.

Addressing the crowd, largely from the nearby resettlement colonies, which are considered a vote bank area of the Congress, Modi lambasted the party for the Adarsh housing scam of Mumbai and said leaders who did not provide homes to the widows of soldiers would never provide shelter to Delhi’s slum dwellers.

“They are shameless people who cheated the widows of Kargil martyrs. Do you believe their promise of providing you homes,” Modi asked and the crowd replied: “No.”

“Don’t get fooled this time by the Congress,” he added.

In his last election speech in the capital, he also attacked the Aam Aadmi Party, saying it was being led by those who developed political ambitions during social activist Anna Hazare’s 2011 movement against corruption.

Attacking the Congress on the issue of corruption, Modi said it “was not a new disease with the party”.

“The Congress shows hand (party’s symbol) during campaigning and when there is favourable atmosphere, it tries its hands. They show one hand and loot with both,” Modi said.

While people turned out in droves to listen to Modi and the ground was packed to capacity, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi got a lukewarm response at a rally here Nov 17 as people started leaving the venue even before the young Congress leader spoke.

Chief Minister Sheila Diskhit was forced to exhort the crowd to wait who were apparently leaving to have lunch.