BJP copied Congress' election manifesto, alleges Rahul Gandhi

Rahul Gandhi on Thursday accused BJP of copying Congress' election manifesto and asked the opposition party to elaborate on its promises to curb corruption.

"Congress started work on poll manifesto six months back and we went to poor, farmers and labourers before drafting our manifesto to know about their problems and issues and incorporated their suggestions in the manifesto, but what BJP did is they removed Congress symbol and pasted their symbol on our manifesto," Gandhi said.

"We want to associate people but BJP wants to run government of big businessmen. This is the difference between Congress and BJP," he said, addressing a public meeting in Jhunjhunu. "Congress wants to give the nation right of health. Our (former) government in Rajasthan took this initiative and now we want to introduce at the national level if our government is formed. We have also made promises with regard to old age pension, right to roof, among other," he said.

Gandhi said that BJP has made promises for such works which have already been started by Congress government. "They talk about one rank one pension in defence forces but Congress has already done it. Congress has started work on an industrial corridor and BJP says that its government if formed would start work for that," he said.

Gandhi said that BJP in its manifesto mentioned that it would take step against corruption, but what step will be taken is not cleared. "They talk about corruption, but when their leader goes to Karnataka, he sits with the most corrupt chief minister who has been to jail on corruption charges. He can not see mining mafia in Chhattisgarh, can not see corruption in Madhya Pradesh," Gandhi said, targeting Narendra Modi.

He alleged that the UPA government introduced Lokpal bill, but BJP opposed it. "UPA government empowered people with Right to Information which brought out corruption before people from the power chambers of chief minister or bureaucrats," Gandhi said, addressing the meeting in support of the party candidate from Jhunjhunu Rajbala Ola. Senior party leader Kumari Selja, PCC President Sachin Pilot, former PCC chief Chandrabhan, former Rajasthan ministers Virendra Beniwal and Brijendra Ola were present in the meeting.