CHENNAI/MADURAI: In the sharpest attack yet on chief minister J Jayalalithaa by any leader in this campaign, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi criticized her leadership qualities and personality while holding up M K Stalin as an humble leader who has the sensitivity to connect with the people just like Kamaraj, MGR and Karunanidhi.
Armed with an array of statistics, Rahul Gandhi, during his campaign speeches in Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai on Saturday, tore into the AIADMK government's freebies while increasing the number of liquor shops that impoverish the people. Jayalalithaa offered Rs 5,000 worth of broken mixies to each household, but ensured that every single family gave away Rs 65,000 to alcohol a year. He also made a policy attack on the AIADMK government for letting the state's debt mount to Rs 4 lakh crore, which translated into a household debt of Rs 2 lakh.
Rahul sought to turn his speeches into an attack on two flanks, by drawing simi larities between Jayalalithaa and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said that a leader who was convinced that universal wisdom lies with him or her could not transform states or nations.
“And that is the tragedy. In Delhi, we have a leader, who is absolutely convinced that the only thing he needs to do is tell India what he feels (Mann Ki Baat). It is a similar problem in Tamil Nadu,“ he said. In Madurai where she shared the stage with Stalin, Rahul Gandhi said while some leaders go to the people, others shun them. “Your CM belongs to the second category. I came all the way from Delhi during the Chennai floods, but your chief minister preferred to stay within the four walls,“ he added.
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