BJP's fear exposed by Priyanka, Rahul's entry

Arindam Roy

[Sunday, February 01, 2004 10:48:11 pm TIMES NEWS NETWORK]


ALLAHABAD: BJP's protest against the entry of Priyanki and Rahul in politics has exposed the mental hollowness of its leaders and revealed their fear, said Rita Bahuguna Joshi, the president of the All India Mahila Congress.

She added that she would request Sonia Gandhi, on behalf of the party, to field either of them from Allahabad, in the forthcoming parliamentary election. Talking to the Congressmen of Jasra and Shankargarh, she said the party was ready to face any eventuality, under Sonia Gandhi's leadership. The BJP and its allies were a worried lot.

Lambasting the BJP leadership for launching a smear campaign against the Gandhi family, which had sacrificed two leaders for the country, Joshi said that the countrymen would teach them a befitting lesson. Taking a dig at the feel good factor, she said that more than 30 crore people were below the poverty line and human development index was 136 amongst 176 countries. There are 3.5 crore registered unemployed people in the country. Farmers, weavers and labourers commit suicide.

And in a country where the plight of women continues to be deplorable, how could its Prime Minister feel that there was a feelgood factor?

Commenting on the sad state of affairs in Allahabad constituency, she said that while MM Joshi took up big projects, he remained unaware of the condition of people of the country. While Shankargarh and Koraon, 50 primary schools had been closed, Sarva Siksha Abhiyan, that he talks about held no meaning, she said.

The Rs 1.5 crore drinking water project of the Congress government was gathering dust and was steeped in corruption, but Joshi is blind to it. For four years, the Women's ITI building has been lying vacant, with leaky roofs. Triveni Sheet Glass has retrenched 80,000 employees, but these seem to be of no concern of the BJP minister, she remarked.