senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot
Photo credit: PTI
Pune: The BJP "toppled" elected governments in several states and it was time for "revenge" by making the Maha Vikas Aghadi victorious in the November 20 Maharashtra polls, former Rajasthan chief minister and senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot said on Monday.
Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, he also questioned why the Election Commission of India was not taking action against the BJP for slogans like "batenge toh katenge" and "ek hai toh safe hai".
"The BJP (earlier) toppled governments in Madhya Pradesh (Kamal Nath dispensation after Jyotiraditya Scindia's revolt), Karnataka, Goa (where Congress MLAs joined the ruling BJP) through horse-trading. It was a black chapter in the country's history. In Maharashtra too the BJP brought down the MVA government (of Uddhav Thackeray)," Gehlot claimed.
"It is time for revenge and time to teach the BJP a lesson by making the MVA victorious. Maharashtra is a leading state and Mumbai the country's financial capital. This assembly poll will shape the direction and condition of India. The message from this election will resonate across the country," the veteran Congress leader asserted.
The Congress's five guarantees and MVA's 'Maharashtrnama' (manifesto) serve the people's interests, with schemes like financial aid of Rs 3,000 per month for women, free bus travel, health insurance coverage of up to Rs 25 lakh and loan waiver of up to Rs 3 lakh for farmers, he said.
The BJP misleads people and only indulges in propaganda, but the people of Maharashtra will not be fooled, Gehlot said.
"One BJP chief minister is saying batoge toh katoge (disunity will bring destruction), while the PM is promoting the slogan 'ek hai toh safe hai' (safety in unity). Yet, the ECI is taking no action. It is working under government pressure. There was a big conspiracy in the way the Maharashtra poll dates were announced," he alleged.
Speaking at the press meet, Mumbai Congress chief Varsha Gaikwad the health care system in the metropolis had completely collapsed.
"In Mumbai, 27 per cent medical staff posts are vacant, MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and CT (computed tomography) scan machines are out of order. There is severe shortage of medicines," she claimed.
Assembly poll results will be announced on November 23.