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Modi targets Congress for not naming Rahul as PM candidate

Says those born in 'aristocratic family' feel below their dignity to contest against a tea vendor

Narendra Modi

Press Trust of India New Delhi
Narendra Modi today launched a sharp attack on Congress, saying it had desisted from projecting Rahul Gandhi as its Prime Ministerial candidate as Sonia Gandhi did not want to "sacrifice" her son politically in view of the "imminent defeat".

The BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate also responded to the Congress' "chai wala" jibe at him, saying all the tea vendor were today proud that one among them was contesting for the top post.

Addressing the party's National Council here, he targeted Rahul without naming him as he said that "those born in an aristocratic family" feel below their dignity to contest against a tea vendor coming from a backward as they have "feudal mindset".
 

In his 75-minute speech, Modi questioned Congress' contention that it was following the tradition of not naming a PM candidate as the person should be elected by the MPs. In this regard, he referred to 1984, when Rajiv Gandhi was declared the Prime Minister after the assassination of his mother Indira Gandhi.

He also mentioned 2004, when Congress MPs elected Sonia Gandhi to be the Prime Minister but she instead nominated Manmohan Singh for the top job.

"I see a human angle behind this decision of Congress. When defeat is imminent, which mother will sacrifice her son politically? The heart of a mother (Sonia) decided to protect her son," Modi said on the ruling party's stand of not naming Rahul as the PM candidate for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

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First Published: Jan 19 2014 | 3:08 PM IST

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