Tea-seller is better than those who sell the country: Modi

Stepping up his attack on the Nehru-Gandhi family, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Friday said Rahul Gandhi was talking of changing the system when it was his father and grandmother who had distorted it and misused it for their personal gains.

The Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate also responded to taunts -- that a tea-seller cannot become the prime minister -- saying a "tea-seller is a better person that those who sell the country".

"Can country-sellers be rulers," he asked.

"The Shehzada (Rahul Gandhi) had come here and was talking about changing the system. In the first place, he should know that the system was made by his father (Rajiv Gandhi), his grand-mother (Indira Gandhi) and great grand-father (Jawaharlal Nehru) for 60 years during their rule.

"It is they who made the system. It is they who distorted it and misused it for their personal gains. When they know that it is the time to go, they are talking about systems," Modi said while addressing an election rally in Raigarh district in Chattisgarh.

The Gujarat chief minister also slammed Sonia Gandhi for blaming the Raman Singh-led government in Chattisgarh for the spread of Naxalism in the state.

He said it was the Congress which repealed the anti-terror law created by the National Democratic Alliance’s regime and held her responsible for the spread of Naxalism and terrorism in the country.

"Madam Soniaji, it is your party which repealed an anti-terror law given by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. It is you who have failed to check terrorism and Naxalism and then you come here and blame Raman Singh for this.... Wow, what a scene! You commit sins and mistakes and blame us for them," he said.

The BJP leader sought an answer from the Congress government on the spread of Naxalism from "Pashupati (Nepal) to Tirupati" in India.

Modi also targeted the Congress chief for alleging that the Chhattisgarh government did not do enough for the development of the agriculture sector in the state.

"Madam, please come here after doing your homework. If you do not have information, please sit with Raman Singhji and then come. Please do not give such statements, it is the question of the country's pride and prestige," he said.

The BJP's prime ministerial nominee claimed that Chhattisgarh was not only producing rice for itself, but also for the three adjoining states.

Alleging that the Congress-led UPA government was busy in "either digging for Modi or digging for gold," Modi said these days Congress leaders and "more than 1,000 researchers" sit in front of television cameras to tear apart his speeches and abuse him in public debates.

Raising the issue of attack on veteran singer Lata Mangeshkar by some Congress leaders for backing him as the prime ministerial nominee, Modi said this smacked of fascism and was against the norms of democracy.

Modi attacked Finance Minister P Chidambaram for allegedly saying on foreign soil that India has been a poor country for the last 5,000 years and questioned his knowledge about the country.

"It is because of the blessings of the media, no one questions him about his knowledge of the country, India has been known to be a prosperous country from the times of Lord Ram and Lord Krishna," he said.

Modi asked people to fulfill the dream of Mahatma Gandhi who, he claimed, wanted the Congress to be dismantled soon after India got independence as he felt that the party has achieved its purpose.