PM launches anti-graft attack in southern push | Latest News India

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched into an anti-corruption attack in rallies in Telangana and Karnataka on Saturday, alleging that there was a “partnership of corruption” between dynastic parties, and that the Congress had given the country nothing except “lies and loot”.

The comments come on a day when the Election Commission of India announced general elections in seven phases beginning on April 19, and were made on the second of a five-day trip across five states across southern India — a region where the BJP hopes to make inroads to fulfil a target of 370 seats for itself and “400 paar” for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that Modi has repeatedly set.

Speaking at a rally in Kollapur in Telangana’s Nagarkurnool, Modi said that while his government at the Centre had worked over their decade in power to change lives, the Congress — in power at the state-level in both Karnataka and Telangana — had only “looted the country’s poor”. “In the last seven decades, the Congress has given nothing to the country except for lies and loot, and now appears totally rudderless,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister said that the Congress had once given the slogan of “garibi hatao” but had done little to uplift the poor. “They used SC, ST and OBC communities as vote banks, yet did nothing to transform their lives. A wave of change only came when the country trusted Modi with a full mandate,” he said.

Modi’s thrust in southern India comes at a time when the BJP hopes to hold on to its Lok Sabha stronghold in Karnataka, where it won 25 of 28 Lok Sabha seats in 2019, but also wants to expand its footprint in states where it has thus far had limited influence. In Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, which have a total of 101 parliamentary seats on offer, the BJP won four in 2019.

The Prime Minister said that the “partnership of corruption” is strongest in “dynastic parties”, referring to the Congress and the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), led by former chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao. “Congress was involved in the 2G scam. BRS indulged in corruption in water that led to the irrigation scam. Both the Congress and BRS support the land mafia,” Modi said.

Describing Telangana as the “gateway of the south”, Modi said his government was committed to its progress and listed the developmental projects undertaken by the central government. “We call Telangana the ‘Gateway of South’. Over the past 10 years, the development of Telangana has been a priority for us. Telangana remained divided between the policies of Congress and BRS. Both these parties have together crushed the dreams and aspirations of Telangana. First, it was BRS’s ‘maha loot’ and now it is Congress’s ‘buri nazar’,” he said.

A day after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested BRS MLC K Kavitha, Rao’s daughter, in connection with a money-laundering probe linked to the Delhi excise policy case that has also embroiled the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Modi said, “BRS sits in partnership with other corrupt parties outside the state. This truth is being revealed every day. No corrupt person will be spared, I am promising the people of Telangana today. I need the blessings of Telangana in this fight against corruption.” Kavitha was on Saturday remanded to ED custody by a Delhi court for a week.

The Congress accused Modi of “cheap politics”.

“The BJP and the BRS are trying to mislead people. Modi wants to take votes portraying that they take action on her for involving in a scam and KCR want to take votes on sympathy. We see how cheap political tactics are being played,” Telangana chief minister and Congress leader Revanth Reddy said.

The PM said the BJP is the only hope for the development of the state. “Both the parties are culpable of impeding the growth of the state. They together have shattered every dream of development in Telangana. First, it was the BRS which plundered the state and now, it is the turn of the Congress,” he said.

In Karnataka’s Kalaburgi, the home turf of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Modi said that the state has no money left for development due to corruption.

“The MLAs have been told that the government does not have money. Is this how a government operates? Even Congress has realised that they will not be able to form the government again. Therefore, Congress has only one agenda left, loot as much as you can… The blackness of coal can be removed but corruption can’t be separated from Congress,” he said.

“Karnataka has resolved to make BJP win a record number of seats in the Lok Sabha elections. Today the whole of Karnataka is saying that this time we will cross 400,” Modi said.

The Prime Minister alleged that funds from Karnataka was being used to fund expenses of the Congress party and “the family”. “Wherever public money is used to fill the stomach, pockets and treasuries of some people, bad governance, disorder and anarchy spreads. Instead of fulfilling promises made ahead of elections, the situation of Karnataka is deteriorating every day,” he said.

Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah hit back at the Prime Minister’s allegations, questioning his silence on what he called the “electoral bonds scam”.

“For a decade, you held power, promising to bring back black money from Swiss Bank, eliminate black money via demonetisation, claiming ‘Na Khaunga, Na Khane Dunga’, and being the so-called ‘Chowkidar of the Nation’. Now, it is time for you to address the issues surrounding the electoral bond scam,” he said in a post on X.