Varanasi:
Highlights of his press conference on Varanasi:
- The main problem here is a lack of izzat (respect). Politicians here do not value the izzat of the aam aadmi.
- My mission is to transform UP.
- Will not budge from this till my work is done- that is when the people here can support themselves, stand on their own feet.
- Till then, Rahul Gandhi will be seen with farmers, in villages, at the homes of poor people.
- Wherever I go, the aam aadmi tells me that for 20 years, they have been fooled by the government in power.
- We have not come here for a compromise...we will strike any deal only with the people of UP, not with others.
- Lokpal Bill -we had a revolutionary idea to make it a constitutional body like the Election Commission. A bill that gives true power to a Lokpal. I saw with my own eyes opposition party leaders laughing at this idea. When we asked them, why did you not pass this idea? They said it is because "This is not our idea. This is Rahul Gandhi's idea."
- This (constitutional status) is going to happen, whether we like it or not.
- We have put ministers in jail for corruption. We have given you Right to Information Act. They (BJP) have a chief minister in Gujarat who is fighting the Lokayukta there.
- It's not that people are not happy with the performance of majority of our MPs. Most of them are doing well, some are not performing well.
- Are we going to grow like Kerala or are we going to stay where we are? This is the question for UP. It cannot be transformed in six months. But you can make a huge beginning if your chief minister decides he or she wants change. Mayawati and Mulayam ji, with all due respect, do not want to change UP.
- Anybody who says caste does not exist in UP has not walked the streets of UP.
- With Sam Pitroda, we had a man from a small community that feels disempowered...and I was saying there is hope for you in this country. There is one person who has done it...you can do it too. It was a message of equality.
- I respect Kanshi Ram, I think he has moved the politics of UP further. I am fond of Mayawati , I respect her.
- My problem with Mayawati -ji is that she has forgotten how to listen to the people of UP.
- UP has lost hope. How do you change a state? You go to a village, you give it hope.
- Uttar Pradesh is slowing India down, and it is not UP's fault. We are not going to tolerate this anymore. Full stop. End.
- Rahul Gandhi has no Shakti. I have no power. I take voices of people to the Lok Sabha and make it heard.
- The only thing I have is that some people believe in me. If one person in UP believes me, that is enough for me.
- We politicians are just transmitters. Our job is to listen and transmit. Our job is to understand and transmit.
- Throw a shoe at me. Do whatever. I am not scared of anyone.
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