Yoga guru Ramdev on Wednesday praised Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi but took potshots at Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi in the context of prime ministerial candidates.
"There is a long queue of people who want to become prime minister. Rahul Gandhi's name is also coming up for the post of PM, but he is not mature enough and has no vision. In the present situation, Narendra Modi appears as a man who is committed to development and one who can prevent corruption," he said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is an honest man, but his tenure has been marked by several corruption scandals, Ramdev, a bitter critic of the Congress, said.
He was speaking at a women's empowerment conference in Shirdi in Western Maharashtra. He alleged in the last two years the UPA government, through its agencies, has made every effort to defame him, but has not found anything incriminating against him till now.
He said it is good that the Central Bureau of Investigation is probing the disappearance of Swami Shankar Dev, his guru.
Ramdev said he is unfazed by the notices served to him and his trust by sales, income and service tax departments. Meanwhile, talking to the media in Jalna district of Marathwada, Ramdev disapproved of Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar's controversial remarks on drought and load-shedding.
Public representatives should not shun their responsibility in a grim situation such as drought, he said when asked about the severe water scarcity in over a dozen districts in the state, including Jalna.
"I have adopted some drought-hit villages in Marathwada region," he said. He defended religious guru Asaram Bapu on the issue of wasting water on Holi in the drought-hit state and criticised the media for "exaggerating" the issue.
Later, Ramdev addressed a public meeting in Ujjain Puri village, where he criticised Rahul for his 'beehive' remark at a CII event last week.
