Income support for farmers: Modi works out of fear, says Rahul

Bhopal, Feb 8 (IANS) Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Friday targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Rs 6,000 grant to farmers as income support, saying one can get anything done by scaring him.

Addressing the "Aabhar Rally" (rally to express gratitude) in Jamboori Maidan here, Gandhi said: "Congress governments in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan have already waived farmers' loans. In future, wherever the Congress comes in power, its Chief Ministers will waive growers' debts."

"A farmer never asks for any surprise, he doesn't beg, he just needs his rights," Gandhi added.

Taunting Modi for Rs 6,000 grant to farmers as financial, aid the Congress President said soon after the Congress governments announced loan waiver schemes in their respective states, Modi got scared and declared himself "a sympathiser of farmers".

It shows that he works out of fear, said the Congress President.

"While 15 richest industrialists got Rs 3.5-lakh crore grant, a farmer's family got only Rs 17, which means in a family of five, one person got only around Rs 3.5... This is amazing," he said.

Speaking at the rally, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Kamal Nath described Gandhi as the "future Prime Minister of India) and said that the people of India want to bid farewell to the Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government.

"The voters of Madhya Pradesh made the Congress victorious in the Assembly elections. In the coming Lok Sabha elections also, people will again vote for the party. Rahul Gandhi is the future Prime Minister of India...the youth, farmers and the women are waiting for the Modi government to show the door," he said.

Earlier in the day, Gandhi reached Bhopal in a chartered plane where he held a brief discussion with Congress leaders and then headed for the rally venue in a helicopter. Congress General Secretary Deepak Bawariya and MP Jyotiraditya Scindia flew down to the state capital from Delhi to join him at the rally.