BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi with Smriti Irani (L) during an election rally in Amethi on Monday
In Amethi, on Gandhi turf,
Narendra Modi today launched a full-scale war against Congress president Sonia Gandhi, her son Rahul and daughter Priyanka, saying "nothing" could rescue the ruling Congress party from defeat. (
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"Voters have already fired the mother-son government," Mr Modi, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate, said in
Rahul Gandhi's Lok Sabha constituency, which his mother and his father represented before him. Rahul, who's spearheading the flailing Congress campaign, has been Amethi's MP for a decade.
"These people (the Gandhis) have destroyed three generations in Amethi," Mr Modi alleged, calling on voters to "break ties with the family" over a lack of basic amenities. The capacity crowd roared with every punchline that the BJP leader delivered. (
Watch: "I Want to Start Building India From Amethi")
He said he came to Amethi, not for "
badla (revenge)" but "
badlav (change). "I have not come here for revenge. I have come here to bring about a change in this constituency," Mr Modi said, rejecting Rahul's recent allegation that he practises "politics of anger".
(Highlights of Narendra Modi's Amethi Speech)
The Congress is fighting the prediction that it faces its worst-ever defeat in this general election. Recently, Rahul's sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has swung into action in Amethi to fashion a fightback against the BJP with an aggressive attack on Mr Modi.
Mr Modi today said it was "arrogant and discourteous" of Ms Vadra to have dismissed talk of the BJP' Amethi candidate Smrit Irani with a headline making "who?" on Sunday, predicting that Ms Irani, a popular TV actor who he described as his "younger sister", would prove "all political pundits wrong,'' by posting a win here. (
In Amethi, Modi takes on Priyanka, slams her for 'arrogance')
Mr Modi said he had picked
Smriti Irani for Amethi "not to trouble Rahul Bhaiyya, he is troubled enough already. I sent her to address the troubles of the people of Amethi."
Ms Irani, who had once staged a protest against Mr Modi, sought his blessings and said, "These elections are the most significant in Amethi's history. When I was declared the candidate, I was asked, why did you challenge Rahul? I said, the people of Amethi have called out to me,"