Neemuch/Madhya Pradesh/IBNS: In a sarcasm-laced assault against erstwhile Congress President Rahul Gandhi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh Monday said that while the Chandrayaan-3 and Aditya-L1 missions proceeded on schedule, the Congress’ 'Rahulyaan' has been unable to launch itself for the past couple of decades.

The visiting leader – who flagged off the BJP’s Jan Ashirwad Yatra for Ujjain division from this district headquarters – slammed DMK leader Udayanidhi Stalin’s statement against Sanatana Dharma.

“Will the Congress sever its association with the DMK? The Congress ought to seek an apology from the Indian populace. The country shall never forgive them. Sanatana Dharma disseminated a global message of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world is one family),” Singh said during his 34-minute-long speech.

Ridiculing the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance as “Kahin ka eenth kahin ka roda Bhanumati ne kunba joda” implying that it is a mismatch of 28 political parties, he rhetorically asked, “Do you like INDIA or prefer Bharat? In the 2004 general election campaign we committed the blunder of using the expression ‘India Shining’ and encountered defeat."

"INDIA is similarly doomed. Observe the abysmal plight of the Congress. Since that party commenced functioning within our democratic system it falsely claimed that they would eradicate poverty. Every election witnessed their hollow slogan ‘Garibi hatao’ renting the air but in reality, the country’s impoverished sank further. Did any Congress PM think of shelter for the impoverished?”

Slamming the approximately 15-month-long tenure of the then Chief Minister Kamal Nath in Madhya Pradesh, “What did he achieve? Second to food, an indigent individual desires a roof over his or her head. However, Mr Nath prevented the construction of two lakh dwellings under the PMAY. Schemes launched during the predecessor BJP dispensation were placed on the back burner and roadblocks were erected in the path of central programmes. I am of the opinion that no other government can be so insensitive.”

He heaped praises on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan for combating the pandemic, Operation Ganga, GDP and GSDP growth, per capita income, and poverty alleviation.

[With UNI inputs]