Comparing Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, the Congress Saturday took a dig at the BJP, saying its election campaign would be led by a man who had put a lock on institutions of accountability.
Congress spokesperson Raj Babbar attacked Modi following the dismissal of the curative petition of Gujarat government Friday challenging the appointment of the Lokayukta in the state.
He alleged that the Modi government had stalled the appointment of an ombudsman "to cover its corruption and misdeeds."
"Since 2003, every effort has been made by the state government to stall the appointment of the Lokayukta," Raj Babbar said.
He said the state government's petition for the cancellation of Gujarat governor Kamla Beniwal's order for appointment of Justice (retd) R.A. Mehta as Lokayukta had been dismissed by the Gujarat high court in October 2012.
He said the Supreme Court had earlier rejected a petition and review petition of the state government, and had Friday also rejected its curative petition concerning the appointment of the Lokayukta. (A curative petition is filed after a review petition is rejected.)
Raj Babbar said that the warrant appointing Justice Mehta as Lokayukta was issued in August 2011, and the state government called the registrar of Lokayukta office "and closed the gate of Lokayukta Bhavan so as to stop him from taking charge."
"Those who want to come to Delhi put locks -- Hitler also did the same. He put locks on big institutions. The Supreme Court verdict has opened the eyes of the country," Raj Babbar said, without referring to Modi by name.
He said the money of the people of Gujarat had been used to fight a case for stalling the appointment of the Lokayukta, and demanded details of this wasteful expenditure.
