New Delhi (Agency): In a brisk response to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s allegations of corruption, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel returned fire, accusing the Prime Minister of spreading falsehoods. The ongoing political dialogue unveiled on a public platform as the national leader alleged corruption within the Congress regime while the state leader vehemently defended his governance.
Earlier today, during a rally held in Raipur, the capital of Chhattisgarh, Prime Minister Modi described corruption as the “core belief” of the Congress Party, suggesting that it cannot function without it. This statement did not go unanswered. Baghel quickly took to Twitter, refuting the Prime Minister’s assertions and accusing him of spreading a cascade of untruths.
Modi’s arrival, Baghel tweeted, was followed by a flood of falsehoods. He said, “Modi ji as you came, waves of lies started flowing. State BJP leaders have been misleading farmers that paddy is procured with the Centre’s money. You are the Prime Minister, you know the truth, but you also lied.” His rhetoric then extended to the specific claim made by the Central Government regarding their role in the state’s paddy procurement. Baghel categorically labeled it as “the biggest lie in the name of farmers.”
He further challenged the Prime Minister by questioning the predicament of farmers in his own constituency, Varanasi. Despite the supposed extensive role of the Central Government, why, he demanded, are these farmers forced to sell their paddy at meagre rates ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1,200 per quintal?
Adding fuel to the fire, Baghel also alleged that BJP leaders in Chhattisgarh had furnished the Prime Minister with incorrect information. Reminding everyone of the swift action his government had taken to fulfil the promise of loan waiver for farmers in 2018, Baghel maintained that Chhattisgarh’s farmers are not easily misled. He accused the BJP of failing to meet their procurement price promises to the farmers, which has not been forgotten by the farming community.
Prime Minister Modi, in his address, had accused the Congress of falling short on their promises, including the implementation of a liquor ban, even after pledging to fulfil them upon forming the government. He further alleged that the Baghel government was playing games with paddy procurement, thus misleading the state’s farmers.
Reinforcing his accusations, Modi claimed that the Central Government, under the BJP, held over 80% of the share in the state’s paddy procurement and had contributed over 1 lakh crore to paddy farmers in the past nine years.
During his inaugural visit to Raipur, the Prime Minister inaugurated and laid the foundations for projects worth approximately Rs 7,600 crore. He criticized Congress for obstructing the state’s progress and engaged in further allegations of corruption within the Baghel government.
Modi’s visit was his first to the Congress-ruled Chhattisgarh since his re-election as Prime Minister in 2019, and it comes ahead of the forthcoming Assembly elections due by year’s end.
