‘Badly exposed’: PM Modi slams Congress after Mallikarjun Kharge’s remark on poll promises; grand old party reacts

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday launched a scathing attack on the Congress following party chief Mallikarjun Kharge’s advice to his party’s state units to make only fiscally doable promises.

Kharge allegedly made the remark amid reports of fiscal problems the party-ruled states are facing in keeping some of their pre-poll announcements.

In a series of posts on his X handle using the hashtag #FakePromisesOfCongress, the prime minister hit out at the grand old party, stating that the people of India wanted development and progress.

The Congress Party is realising the hard way that making unreal promises is easy but implementing them properly is tough or impossible, said the prime minister.

“Campaign after campaign, they promise things to the people, which they also know they will never be able to deliver. Now, they stand badly exposed in front of the people!” he added.

Inviting attention to states where the Congress has governments today — Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana, Modi said, “The developmental trajectory and fiscal health is turning from bad to worse. Their so-called guarantees lie unfulfilled, which is a terrible deceit upon the people of these states. The victims of such politics are the poor, youngsters, farmers and women, who are not only denied the benefits of these promises but also see their existing schemes diluted.”

What PM Modi said slamming Congress

— In Karnataka, the Congress is busier in intra-party politics and loot instead of even bothering to deliver on development. Not only that, they are also going to roll back existing schemes.

— In Himachal Pradesh, government workers’ salaries are not paid on time. In Telangana, farmers are waiting for the waiver they promised.

— Previously, in Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan, they promised certain allowances which were never implanted for five years. There are numerous such examples of how the Congress works.

“People of the country will have to be vigilant against the Congress-sponsored culture of fake promises! We saw recently how the people of Haryana rejected their lies and preferred a government that is stable, progress-oriented and action-driven. There is a growing realisation across India that a vote for the Congress is a vote for non-governance, poor economics and unparalleled loot,” Modi said.

However, Congress general secretary KC Venugopal rebuffed PM Modi’s comments. “We are implementing our promises. In Karnataka, whatever we had promised, we are implementing it, and anybody can check it. What PM said is wrong…Basically, the Govt of India is not delivering what they promised…They are blaming us for non-delivery. But on our part, we are delivering on our promises,” he said.

Meanwhile, noting that the former Congress president often boasts of “khata khat” (immediate) money transfers, BJP leader Ravi Shankar Prasad also asked mockingly if Kharge had given his first ‘gyan’ to Rahul Gandhi.

Further claiming that the party-run governments in states like Karnataka, Telangana and Himachal Pradesh face financial hardships in fulfilling the guarantees offered to people, the former law minister says Kharge has realised that the Congress should not make reckless announcements.