Haryana: Rajnath slams INDIA bloc over corruption issues

Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday launched a blistering attack on the INDIA bloc over the corruption issue and asked should the government not take action against the corrupt.

While addressing a gathering at the Gharaunda grain market, Singh also accused the AAP and the Congress of betraying Anna Hazare and Mahatma Gandhi, respectively.

“Kejriwal would claim to be the most honest person. Now, he says he has been jailed by Modi ji...should our government not take action against corruption,” he said. “Kejriwal had said that he would not form a party, but he did. Congress did not follow Bapu’s demand to dissolve the party. Now you have to clean both from the country,” he added.

The minister, who addressed the rally while sitting due to an injury on leg during campaigning, further hitting out at Kejriwal, said, “He blames Modi for sending him to jail. Then tell me why his aide Sanjay Singh was released on bail in the same case. Shouldn’t the government take action against corruption? Earlier, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) were not allowed to do anything, leaders were free to loot. Before 2014, both ED and CBI had just recovered ₹32 lakh in corruption cases across the country, but under our regime, ₹22,000 crore cash and property worth ₹1 lakh crore have been attached.”

Rajnath also hinted at big responsibility to former chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar in the Parliament, if elected as Lok Sabha MP.

While addressing a gathering at Gharaunda grain market, Singh told the gathering, “I have known Khattar for the last four decades and Prime Minister Narendra Modi respects Khattar a lot. I want to tell you that you will not elect Khattar merely as an MP.”

At the rally, Singh also recalled the emergency period and how he was in jail when his mother died of a brain haemorrhage.

“They say if Modi wins 400+ seats, he will become a dictator. Let me remind you how Indira Gandhi lost an election and imposed an emergency. At the age of 24, I was in jail for 2.5 months in Mirzapur and later shifted to Delhi Central Jail for 18 months. During this time my mother suffered a brain haemorrhage. She was admitted to Varanasi hospital for 27 days and then died. I was not given parole, and I did not even petition for that. Because I don’t believe in filing pleas, I believe in fighting the battle,” he said.

He also batted for ‘one nation, one election’ and said that his BJP-led government has initiated steps in this field for the implementation.

Attacking the Congress, he said they ruled the country for nearly 55 years but failed to alleviate poverty.

From Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi to Manmohan Singh, they talked of alleviating poverty, but it did not happen, he said. First time in independent India, it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who brought 25 crore Indians out of poverty, he added.