NEW DELHI: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday raised question over Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision to meditate in Kedarnath, wondering what message does the prime minister wants to give the nation now.
It may be recalled that PM Modi on Saturday offered prayers at Kedarnath temple in Uttarakhand and after offering prayers at the temple, he went inside a nearby cave to meditate. Later, his photographs were shown by TV channels in which PM Modi was seen meditating covering himself with a saffron shawl.
“Today he is sitting in a cave wearing ‘bhagwa’ (saffron). God knows, what message he wants to deliver. Everybody has been watching him,” said Gehlot. The senior Congress leader accused the prime minister of trying to polarise the voters ahead of the seventh and last phase of Lok Sabha poll by such acts.
Congress’s chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala also took a potshot at PM Modi, tweeting a picture of him walking on a “red carpet” in Kedarnath temple. “True devotees sacrifice their ego and arrogance before going to the abode of God, not after laying a red carpet. Modi ji, hope you know that much,” Surjewala said on Twitter. On Sunday, PM Modi is scheduled to visit Badrinath temple.
Gehlot slammed PM Modi for maintaining a stoic silence important issues like unemployment, agrarian crisis, economy and foreign policy and only talking about only issues like nationalism and religion. The Rajasthan CM also took a dig at PM Modi and BJP president Amit Shah for addressing the media on Friday, saying that the prime minister did not care to address the media since 2014 but then decided to come before reporters after the end of his term.
“See their face and body language during the press conference. The country has seen the message they gave. (Congress president) Rahul Gandhi had challenged them to debate but they backed off. Why they stayed away from talking about issues? What they did in five years? What was their vision? They talked (only) about their campaigning and strategy,” Gehlot said. It is to be noted that the prime minister did not take any question during the press conference, saying that he is a 'disciplined soldier' of the party and in BJP no one speaks in front of party president.
