Remove 'mother-son' regime, urges Modi

Bilaspur/Sarguja (Chhattisgarh)/Jalgaon/Nashik (Maharashtra), April 20 (IANS) BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi Sunday hit out at the Congress-led UPA, terming it a "maa betey ki sarkar" (a mother-son government) and urged people to vote them out.

The Bharatiya Janata Party leader also accused the Congress of using secularism as a tool to divert attention away from the country's real problems.

"I talk about ending graft, benefitting farmers, protecting our mothers and sisters, giving jobs to the youth, but all they talk about is secularism. Why are they not addressing the real problems of the country," Modi asked at a public rally.

"I am thinking of ways to solve these problems but the Congress is busy finding out a solution for Modi," he added.

In a jibe at the Congress chief at Bishrampur in Sarguja district of Chhattisgarh, he said: "She tells the people of Amethi to take care of her son and tells the country 'My son will take care of the nation'. A son who could not manage Amethi, how will he manage an entire nation?"

Modi also took pot shots at Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra.

On the allegations of corruption against Vadra, Modi referred to a Wall Street Journal report on Vadra's sudden rise in wealth and said: "They spoke about a Class 10 pass youth who had only Rs.1 lakh in his pocket and then went on to own Rs.300 crore in three years. This is the mother-son model. You heard about 2G, now hear about jijaji (brother-in-law). Do we have to leave this country in their hands?"

He accused the Gandhis of cheating the youth by promising them jobs and asked people to remove the "mother-son" United Progressive Alliance government.

He said the youth did not get any jobs but the "jijaji" (brother-in-law) got it.

Modi said the Gandhi duo promised to provide jobs to unemployed youth of Chhattisgarh but failed to do so.

"During the last Lok Sabha election, the mother and son government had promised jobs to 10 crore youth but failed to do so. They cheated (the youth of) the country as well as Chhattisgarh," Modi said in Bilaspur district of Chhattisgarh.

He also took a dig at the press conference by the prime minister's communications advisor Pankaj Pachauri.

"For the first time, the PMO had to do a press conference to say that the PM spoke 1,100 times in 10 years," he said.

Later, addressing a rally through virtual 3D technique, Modi said Congress does not think about India beyond election.

"For us, India is the motherland but for you it is 'Mother's land'. You need to think beyond elections," Modi said in an indirect attack on Rahul Gandhi.

He also questioned why big leaders of the Congress were not willing to contest the election.

In a comment on safety of women, Modi said it was the government's duty to protect women.

"I am not one of those who says your daughter must be home before sunset. The government has to protect women, it is a duty," he said.