Firdaus Khan
Banda (Uttar Pradesh). On the fourth day of the fifth phase of his campaign for Congress for the upcoming assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh All India congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary Rahul Gandhi said that the people of U.P cannot trust BJP, SP or BSP as they betrayed the people of Uttar Pradesh in the past 22 years. Addressing a public rally in Banda in Uttar Pradesh the Congress General Secretary said that two decades of misrule by these non-Congress Governments in U.P dragged the state backwards. Rahul Gandhi asserted that the state needs a government that works for all caste, religion, poor, minorities, dalits and adivasis and only Congress can provide it.
He reminded the gathering of the Congress promise of government of aam admi. “During the campaign for the Lok Sabha elections in 2004 while other parties made a number of hollow promises Congress had only promised a government of aam aadmi that works for poor, farmers, minorities, dalits and adivasis and we delivered it, said Rahul Gandhi and added “We want every citizen, people from every caste, creed and religion, to be a part in the process of development.”
“But the BJP and NDA brought out a slogan India Shining. When asked about the origin of the slogan their senior leader said that they picked it from a television advertisement. They did not go to people, talked to them or enquired about their problems. There were no proper roads, electricity or sufficient water, still believed blindly that India was shining” he argued and then asked “Was India shining then? Were your villages shining?” and the crowd responded loudly with big no.”
“But what did we do? We came to you, talked to you and enquired about your difficulties. You told us that there are no sufficient jobs available in the villages. So the first thing we did was to implement MNREGA, the biggest employment guarantee scheme, to guarantee jobs for all. By this biggest employment generation scheme poor are assured of jobs if they intend to work. Every poor is assured of 100 days of work at a daily wages of Rs 120 thus amounting to Rs 12,000 a year,” said Rahul Gandhi on UPA’s Mahatma Gandhi NREGA policy.
Taking a jab at Mayawati he continued, “Mayawati Ji says that MNREGA has no benefit for the people of UP. Ask people in Kerala, Maharashtra, Haryana, Delhi or Assam, wherever Congress is in power, and everyone will vouch for the benefit of the policy. They will admit that they could get job as well as self respect. But Mayawati says that it is a drama,” he averred. “She is right in one way. No poor, labourers or farmers were benefitted by the MNREGA policy in U.P. Only BSP ministers, its leaders and the magic elephant of Mayawati in Lucknow were benefitted. Her elephant in Lucknow gobbles up the funds meant for the poor, instead of grass and leaves” Rahul Gandhi told to the cheering crowd.
“When we made this policy, the BJP asked us inside the Parliament from where we can have money for the scheme,” informed Rahul Gandhi. “This is the money of your sweat and blood. This money is the result of hard work of farmers and labourers from UP in Maharashtra, Delhi, Haryana and Punjab. If the country is developing it is because of your efforts, your blood and sweat,” said Rahul Gandhi amidst applauds. “We do only one thing. We ensure that the money we received from you reaches back to you,” he claimed.
“After this flag ship program we came to know that farmers face a lot of hardship. So we drafted a policy to waiving off the loan of the farmers worth Rs. 60000 crore. We opened the doors of banks for them. Mayawati again called it a drama. What drama she is talking about” wondered the Congress General Secretary.
“When Bundelkhand was crying for a relief because of the acute drought, no one from BSP went there. They were busy looting the public funds. But we went there. We led a delegation to the Prime Minister and he immediately sanctioned a relief package for Bundelkhand” informed Rahul Gandhi. “Did you get anything? Did any farmers, labourers, poor people get any benefit?” he asked and continued “No. Those funds too were looted by the Mayawati’s ministers”.
“On one side there is elephant, and the other side Cycle. Uttar Pradesh is crushed between these two” commented Rahul Gandhi.  Taking on the Samajwadi Party he said “Now SP is portraying umeed ki Cycle. What trust they are talking about? You trusted the Cycle three times. Mulayam Singh Yadav was your Chief Minister for three terms. You know very well what was happening under his regime? There was a scam in the appointment of police personnel. Criminal were posted in the police department. It was rampant goondaraj then. No one was able to file a FIR under their regime,” he said.
“Mulayam Singh Yadav talks about minorities, but does nothing. It was the Congress which implemented the recommendations of Sachhar Commission report. We sent crores of rupees to U.P. Did it reach you?” he asked and the crowd again responded with a roaring no.
“When we decided on reservation for minorities, Mayawati Ji immediately said that she had written to the Prime Minister. What was the need of writing to the PM? She is the Chief Minister and what was she doing all these days? When Mulayam Singh was asked by the media persons regarding the issue of reservation, he did not utter a word. He just kept mum. When we, the Congress, implemented the reservation, he says that it is inadequate” he said and asked “If it is inadequate, why Mulayam Ji did not do anything when he was in power? Why there is no any such promise in their election manifesto?”
“When elections come, they come to you and make a lot of promises but forget those after that. But we, the Congress, will give you only one promise; a government of aam aadmi. We once promised this in 2004 and delivered it. We will fulfill it in U.P too” assured Rahul Gandhi.