Congress president Rahul Gandhi and Andhra CM and TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu (right) addressing a joint conference in Hyderabad. (Source: INC/Twitter)
A host of political bigwigs were in Rajasthan and Telangana on Wednesday, the last day of campaigning ahead of assembly elections in the two states on December 7. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Amit Shah led the BJP’s campaigning in Rajasthan, a state where the party is battling incumbency and whose results are seen as a weather vane to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The PM held rallies inĀ Sumerpur and Dausa while Shah was in Jaipur and Ajmer.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s last stop, meanwhile, was in Telangana, where he held a public meeting in Suryapet and later attended a conference in Hyderabad. The Congress has allied with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP),Ā Telangana Jana Samithi and CPI ā under the aliasĀ PrajakutamiĀ or People’s Alliance ā in the hope to wrest power from the ruling Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS).
Rajasthan Assembly Elections 2018: Congress chief Rahul Gandhi during an election rally in Alwar on Tuesday, Dec. 4, 2018. (PTI Photo)
The election campaigning for Telangana and Rajasthan Assembly polls has concluded. Voting in both the states will take place on December 7 and the results will be declared on 11th.
Addressing a joint presser, Congress president Rahul Gandhi and TDP chief and Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu fired a broadside at the Narendra Modi-led central government as well as the state's caretaker CM K Chandrasekhar Rao.
The Congress chief slammed the state government while speaking about the rural distress. "Farmers being treated as liabilities; they should be treated as assets and with respect," the Congress chief said.
When asked who will be CM if the Congress-led alliance comes to power, Gandhi said the question is premature and that the first goal was to
'remove KCR'.
Congress President Rahul Gandhi Wednesday charged Prime Minister Narendra Modi and caretaker Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao with having a "partnership" and vowed to end their rule at the Centre and in the state. "In a few days, a storm will come in Telangana, a storm of change will come, and the voice of people of Telangana will again control the state, and fulfil the dreams of Telangana," he said predicting victory for the Congress-led alliance in the December 7 Assembly polls.
The "real name" of TRS (Telangana Rashtra Samiti) is T-RSS, Telangana-RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh), Gandhi said. "And its (TRS) job is to protect Narendra Modi in the country. We are going to break this partnership. First, we will defeat KCR here (in Telangana). And then, Congress and other parties will defeat Narendra Modi," he said. PTI
Congress president Rahul Gandhi addresses public at Kodad in Telangana.
BJP president Amit Shah will hold a roadshow from Kesarganj to Naya Bazar in Ajmer from 1 pm.
Modi in Sumerpur: We found around 6.5 crore people so far who were not even born and yet were present on papers, extracting money from the system. By spotting these fake identities, we saved the Rs 90,000 crore of the people.
Modi in Sumerpur: These four generations made corruption their moral. Corruption is the root cause of all our problems. Corruption is a termite, we need to erase it completely. Congress, which made corruption their morality, can they remove it?
Modi in Sumerpur: Naamdars (Gandhi's) gave away the land taken from farmers to their relative (Robert Vadra) at peanut's price. He earned 7 fold profit out of it without even investing a single penny. Shouldn't they be punished? If BJP comes to power in Rajasthan, they will surely go into jail.
We brought back the middleman Rajdaar (Chritian Michel) of Naamdaars (Gandhi's) from Dubai. Now even we don't know what deep troubles his statements are going to cause to Naamdaars.
Modi in Sumerpur: People were asking me you used to talk about corruption in 2014. They should ask me what I did in that regard. I asked the bureaucrats to check the files of Naamdaars, the scams they did.
Our government won in Supreme Court yesterday, which said that we can re-open their cases.
How long can they run? One day they will have to face justice.
Modi in Sumerpur: First give answers to what you did for four generations, then seek answers for what we did for 4 years.
Modi in Sumerpur: Congress is busy finding a scapegoat for their impending loss in the elections to save Rahul Gandhi. They have lost already.
Starting his address at Sumerpur in Rajasthan, Modi asked the crowd, "Do you have any problem saying Bharat Mata ki Jai? Do you? Because the Naamdaar (Rahul Gandhi) in Congress has problem saying it."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold an election rally in Sumerpur at 12 noon.
When asked a question on the recent violence in Bulandshahr, Shah says it is unfair to politicise the issue. He adds that the report from the SIT will paint a clearer picture.
Amit Shah lists out the Modi government's achievements in the state. He says they have transformed the state from 'bimaru' to developed and will help the state prosper further if elected back to power. Exuding confidence that BJP will form the government on December 11, he adds that the Congress has engaged in negative politics and promoted casteism and appeasement. He also targets the party for promoting members of one family, but the BJP promotes those who work hard.
Amit Shah, who is holding a press conference in Jaipur, is asked about the Opposition's claim that the alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland scam, Christian Michel, was extradited to take the limelight away from other issues. To this, Shah counter-questions: "Shouldn't we be catching the middleman involved in the scam? Is it not important?"
Amit Shah lists the achievements of the BJP-led government since coming to power in 2014. He says the party, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has helped the state develop. He adds that the Congress has fought the election on caste issues and dynasty, while the BJP had advocated development and upliftment of the people.
On the last day of the campaign in Rajasthan, BJP chief Amit Shah is addressing a press briefing. "222 public gatherings, 15 roadshows were held in the state by BJP leaders," Shah said
With the Rajasthan elections just days away, Dalits are keeping BJP, Congress guessing. The community forms close to 16 per cent of the electorate. According to Advocate and Centre for Dalit Rights (CDR) patron P L Mimroth, the unrest over the SC/ST Act has galvanised Dalits. “But in Rajasthan, this is a unique situation where neither national party wants to speak about it. This has left Dalits angry, and with little choice,” he said.
Meanwhile, Nandlal Jatav, who campaigns for the Ambedkarite Party of India, says Dalits are left with little choice. “We cannot vote for the BJP, and the Congress thinks we will automatically vote for them. That’s why the Ambedkarite Party is contesting 29 seats,” he said.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi will hold a public meeting at Uttam Padmavati Nagar Ground in Suryapet district at 1 pm this afternoon. He will later hold a press conference in Hyderabad at around 4 pm. The Congress is in alliance with the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Telangana Jana Samithi and CPI in the state. Their alliance is termed Prajakutami or People’s Alliance.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is holding two rallies in Rajasthan today. The first is in Sumerpur at around noon, while the second is in Dausa at 3 pm. BJP chief Amit Shah, meanwhile, is holding a rally in Jaipur this morning at 11 am, after which he will hold a roadshow through Ajmer at 1 pm. Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje will her campaign, travelling to Udaipur, Banswara, Kota and Baran.
Telangana's incumbent Chief Minister and TRS leader K Chandrasekhar Rao, who has been on a vigorous campaign trail seeking a second term, has been reminding the electorate of the schemes he has introduced since bifurcation in 2014. In his speeches, he is also unsparing in his attack against the BJP, Congress and Telugu Desam Party leader and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and TDP leader N Chandrababu Naidu. TRS is contesting the December 7 polls alone.
Also read | Fish to sheep, KCR’s sop story has it all
Welcome to our LIVE blog on the Rajasthan and Telangana Assembly elections. The two states are slated to go to polls on Friday, December 7. Today is the last day of campaigning in the states before the Model Code of Conduct kicks in. Follow this blog for the latest news and updates.