Dantewada/Balod (Chhattisgarh): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Saturday claimed that corruption increases every time the Congress comes to power and likened the party to the reality show 'Bigg Boss', known for squabbles among participants.
Addressing rallies in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada and Kanker districts, he said the Congress would be finished in the state after the Lok Sabha polls and extinct like dinosaurs in the next few years in the country. He also pitched for the 'one nation, one election' idea citing it would save time and resources.
"Corruption increases whenever the Congress comes to power. Since Independence, the party has faced charges of corruption whenever it was in power," said Mr Singh during a rally at Geedam in Dantewada district.
Even after being elected to power in Chhattisgarh in 2018, he said, "it committed scams including the one concerning cow dung".
"However, no one can point a finger or level a single corruption charge at the Narendra Modi government," Mr Singh asserted.
Hailing Chief Minister Vishnu Deo, he said Chhattisgarh will rapidly progress under the newly elected BJP government in the state.
The Congress is like a piece of rusted iron and has started resembling the "house of Bigg Boss since all its leaders are busy tearing one another's clothes", he claimed.
The condition of Congress has been deteriorating such that in the next 5-10 years after 2024, when people talk about it, their children will ask who Congress is. The Congress will become extinct the way dinosaurs vanished from the earth, he said, adding that several of its leaders have been joining the BJP.
The Union minister further targeted the Congress over corruption, referring to late prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's statement that only 14 paise out of a rupee meant for the welfare of people actually reached them.
"I don't want to criticise any PM as a PM is not an individual but an institution. He (Rajiv Gandhi) had expressed his compulsion. But PM Modi took it as a challenge and now 100 paise sent from Delhi reaches cent per cent to beneficiaries," he claimed.
Corruption cannot be eradicated by giving speeches as there is a need to change the system to end graft.
The senior BJP leader said the country's stature has risen globally in the last ten years. "Our prime minister has done 'karishma' (miracle). Earlier, India was considered a poor nation and nobody listened to it in the word. Now, India's prestige has grown so much that everyone listens whenever it speaks," he said.
Nearly 46 per cent of all the world's digital transactions happen in India, he said.
In those days, India would go to other countries with its problems. Now whenever tension brews between two nations, they look to India for a solution. "India has become stronger," he said.
"They (opposition) sometimes accuse Modi ji of being partial to Hindus compared to Muslims. But you will be surprised to know that five Muslim countries have conferred their highest awards on Modi ji. This is the stature of India," he said.
Further underscoring the point, Mr Singh highlighted the release of eight former Navy personnel, who had been given capital punishment, from Qatar. "As soon as our PM called the president of Qatar, they safely returned to India. This is the power of India," he added.
Mr Singh said some political parties make big promises in their manifestos but forget to fulfill those after assuming power. It is the BJP's character that it does what it says, he stressed.
"We had promised to construct the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. They (Congress) used to taunt us by asking the date (of construction). Now a grand temple of lord Ram Lalla has been built in Ayodhya. I believe now the process of establishing Ram Rajya will start in India," he said.
The defence minister slammed Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Misa Bharti over her comments on PM Modi.
"An RJD leader said if they are elected to power they will put Modi ji behind bars. Their leaders are themselves in jail. They are just trying to mislead people to garner votes," he said in an apparent reference to the conviction of Bharti's father and former Bihar chief minister Lalu Yadav in the fodder scam.
The BJP never misleads people, it rather seeks their support by making eye contact with them, he said.
Bharti, the RJD candidate from Bihar's Pataliputra Lok Sabha seat, has claimed that the media played a "distorted clip", adding that her comments were focussed on a probe into the now-scrapped electoral bonds scheme.
Addressing another rally at Balod in the Kanker Lok Sabha constituency, he said development takes place when the BJP is at the helm as it does not do politics only to form the government but to build the nation.
Mr Singh said his party changed the perception of people towards politicians as it walks the talk.
"Modi is blessed with amazing and imaginative ability. He does not live for himself, he lives for the country... I am confident that India's pride will never be lowered under his leadership. We are fortunate that our country has got such a prime minister. God has sent Modi ji to make India a world power," he said.
Had the Congress partially fulfilled the promises it had made to people, India would be a powerful and wealthy country today, he said.
"We had said that we will end the practice of triple talaq. Other parties may tolerate it but BJP will never tolerate atrocities against the mothers and sisters in the country," he said.
Mr Singh campaigned for the BJP's Bastar Lok Sabha candidate Mahesh Kashyap and Kanker Lok Sabha candidate Bhojraj Nag.
The 11 Lok Sabha seats in the state will go to polls in three phases between April 19 and May 7 and votes will be counted on June 4.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)