For Rahul, poverty means tourism: Modi

Taking a jibe at Rahul Gandhi for his visits to houses of the poor, BJP's prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi today said poverty is like tourism for the Congress Vice President.
"Shehzade (Rahul), for you poverty is like tourism. The way people visit Taj Mahal and take photographs, similarly he visits houses of the poor with TV cameras to show it off," Modi said during a rally in Dhamtari that falls under Mahasamund parliamentary constituency of Chhattisgarh ahead of the second phase of Lok Sabha polls in the state.
"Congress does not care about the problems faced by the common man. Shehzada had once said in his speech that he relishes speaking about poverty. He thinks poverty is a state of mind. Is this a matter of entertainment?," Modi asked.

Targetting Rahul and referring to his own humble tea-seller origins, Modi said, "One who is born with a golden spoon hardly knows what poverty is."
Slamming the UPA over the issue of inflation, Modi said although Congress had promised to combat price rise within 100 days, it had not been able to deal with the issue.
"Madam Sonia and Shehzada are asking across the country my account of work, instead of answering to people about their own work. They never answered why price rise has not been controlled despite their promises in 2009," he asked.

He alleged there was no democracy in Congress.

"They don't believe in democratic tradition. They believe in dynastic trend and live with it. They believe that people could be carried in their pockets," he said.
Urging people to vote Congress out, Modi said, "A deaf, dumb and lame government is not needed at the Centre. People should bring in a strong government."
Noting that the creation of three new states under the NDA regime had been a smooth affair, Modi said the turmoil over the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh shows how the ruling Congress at the Centre indulges in "divide and rule" politics.
"There was no strife when the BJP bifurcated Uttarakhand from Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh from Madhya Pradesh and Jharkhand from Bihar. But when Congress divided Andhra Pradesh, both Telangana and Seemandhra are still disturbed. Hence, it is evident that Congress indulges in the politics of divide and rule. It is a party which divides the society and cuts it into pieces," he alleged.