All India Congress Committee Media and Communications Department Chairman Pawan Khera on Sunday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his two-day official visit to Assam, accusing him of seeking votes while the country faces a fuel crisis.
Addressing a press conference at Rajiv Bhawan in Guwahati, Khera said: "At a time when the entire country is facing a shortage of fuel and people are standing in long queues for cooking gas, it is astonishing that he has come to Assam seeking votes. In such circumstances, anyone who still has the courage to ask for votes must be utterly shameless."
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Responding to Modi's comment in his previous day's speech — that Congress does not know how many zeros come after Rs 24,000 crore — Khera said: "Yes, we do not know, because such enormous sums benefit only your party and your close friends."
He alleged that deception and lying had become habitual for the Prime Minister and said the entire country felt embarrassed because of his conduct. He accused Modi of lacking the courage to speak about the country's economic condition and instead continuing to attack Congress in his speeches.
Khera claimed it was the Congress party that had placed Assam's tea industry on the world map, alleging that the BJP government had damaged the industry over the past ten years.
He said Congress would continue to expose the truth before the people and was not "sitting quietly to please Modi and the BJP by singing lullabies."
Asked about leaders leaving the party after being denied election tickets, Khera said it was natural during elections for some leaders to feel disappointed. "There is nothing surprising about it," he said.
Dismissing Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's claim that he would personally decide 30 Congress candidates, Khera said the CM was in "such a poor state that he cannot even distribute BJP tickets properly." He alleged that multiple candidate lists were circulating within the BJP — one from the RSS, one from Sarbananda Sonowal, and others from various leaders.