BJP toppled Congress govt in MP by purchasing MLAs, alleges Rahul Gandhi; says his party will win 150 seats

BJP toppled Congress govt in MP by purchasing MLAs, alleges Rahul Gandhi; says his party will win 150 seats

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday accused the BJP of toppling his party's government in Madhya Pradesh in 2020 by purchasing MLAs, and expressed confidence that the grand old party would win around 150 seats in the assembly elections in the state to be held on November 17.

He was addressing an election rally in Vidisha, around 55 km from the state capital. "A storm is going to come in favour of the Congress. The party will be winning 145 to 150 seats. Five years back, you (people) elected a Congress government but BJP leaders (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi, (MP Chief Minister) Shivraj Singh and (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah purchased the MLAs and stole your government," Gandhi said.

The Kamal Nath-led Congress dispensation, which was in power in Madhya Pradesh for 15 months till March 2020, waived farm loans of 27 lakh farmers. But by toppling that government, the BJP deceived labourers, farmers, small traders and unemployed people, he alleged.

The Congress ousted the BJP from power in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh through love and not hatred, he said.

"The BJP ran a 40 percent cut government in Karnataka...(After Congress came to power there) I told the Karnataka chief minister to return the money that was snatched by the BJP government from the pockets of poor people in five years. I told him to return the money to the poor, which the BJP had given to the rich," he said.

People in the Congress-ruled Karnataka and Chhattisgarh are getting LPG cylinders at Rs 500 each, while people in other states are paying Rs 1,200-1,400 here for the same, Gandhi said.

The former Congress president said the Congress fulfilled all its promises in Karnataka, including farm loan waiver and free bus travel to women. Farmers in Chhattisgarh are getting the guaranteed minimum support price (MSP) of the crop and labourers are being paid Rs 10,000 as wages. This is strengthening the local economy, he said.