Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said on Thursday that people’s emotions are being used for political purposes. The Congress leader said that people are being tricked in the name of religion and caste as part of a conspiracy so that they do not ask basic questions. While addressing the ‘Women’s Prosperity Conference’ organized by the Bhupesh Baghel government in Bhilai, Priyanka Gandhi made several sharp attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and also narrated an anecdote related to the former PM and her father Rajiv Gandhi. He told how a woman started shouting at Rajiv Gandhi for the bad road.
Recalling a childhood incident, Priyanka Gandhi said that she was accompanying her father to his constituency. Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister then and was driving the car. He came down to talk to the people. Priyanka said, ‘A woman complained to my father about the bad condition of the roads and started shouting at him. My father answered his questions. When I asked him if he felt bad? He said no. He said it was the woman’s job to ask questions and hers to answer.
The Congress leader said that by narrating something that happened almost 40 years after that incident, he increased his point on religion-caste politics. She said she met a woman in Uttar Pradesh who sells bangles. Priyanka said, ‘I asked the woman if she had a gas cylinder and she said she had one, but it was empty. The woman complained about lack of water and electricity, but said that she would vote only for the sitting MLA and then started talking about caste and religion.
Priyanka said, ‘Values have changed in politics. People’s emotions are being used for political purposes. As part of a political conspiracy, people are being misled in the name of religion and caste so that they do not ask basic questions. Priyanka appealed to the people to ask those who ask for votes in the name of religion and caste, what they have done for you. Priyanka described the G20 conference as making the country proud but questioned the expenditure incurred on it. The Congress leader claimed that Rs 27 thousand crores have been spent for Yashobhoomi and the cost of the new Parliament is Rs 20 thousand crores. Gandhi said that the Prime Minister does not explain why the condition of roads is bad, why there is no employment and why inflation is increasing.
