Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said advertising is the only thing that the BJP and AAP are good at.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's supposed promise to replicate his state's development model in Delhi if the BJP is elected to power drew a sharp jibe from Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Tuesday. "Why?" she wanted to know.
"Uttar Pradesh was once one of the most prosperous states in the country, but things are different today. After five years of BJP rule, it instead boasts of the highest unemployment rate in the country, a woman's rape every two minutes, a case of child abuse every 90 minutes, the torture of at least 30 Dalits every day," Priyanka Gandhi said at a rally in the national capital, adding: "I wonder why they would want to turn Delhi into another Uttar Pradesh under such circumstances."
The Congress leader said that the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party were both trying to capitalise on late Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit's achievements to win the upcoming polls. "Sheila Dikshit did so many things for Delhi. So many roads were constructed, she made flyovers, she brought the metro system. But these people are only good at publicity," she said, claiming that the BJP and the Aam Aadmi Party have spent Rs 5,000 crore and Rs 650 crore on advertising respectively.
"If your work truly speaks for you, why would you spend so much on publicising it?" Priyanka Gandhi asked.
The Congress leader went on to criticise the BJP-ruled centre, accusing it of coming down hard on anybody who speaks against it. "Everybody agrees that the Goods and Services Tax and demonetisation have broken the people's back. But if anybody dares raise their voice against the government, they are made to shut their mouth," she said.
Priyanka Gandhi exhorted the people to come out and vote for the Congress in large numbers on Saturday. "What kind of country or state do you want? This is not a small election. You have to take it seriously!" she said.
Priyanka Gandhi and her brother, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, are scheduled to deliver four rallies in Delhi's Jangpura, Sangam Vihar, Kondli and Hauz Khas between Tuesday and Wednesday. Their party is pitted against the ruling Aam Aadmi Party and a resurgent BJP. The Congress had drawn a blank in the 2015 assembly elections.
Delhi will go to vote on Saturday, and the results will be announced three days later.