Pralhad Joshi slams 'migrant neta' Rahul Gandhi over Wayanad vikas, Sabarimala doublespeak

Union Minister Pralhad Joshi called Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi a 'migrant leader' who had taken refugee in Kerala while attacking the Congress leader for remaining mum on the Sabarimala issue. The BJP leader called out the differences between the Congress' state unit and the national leadership on the entry of women into Sabarimala and pointed out that Rahul Gandhi's silence on the issue mirrored his commitment to the sentiments of the Hindus. The BJP election in-charge of Kerala further claimed that Rahul Gandhi had taken shelter in Wayanad after the people of Amethi rejected him and alleged that no development had taken place in Amethi despite the ex-Congress chief representing the constituency. 

"There was no development.In fact, there was no X-Ray machine in the public health facility in his constituency," Joshi alleged.

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Addressing a press conference here to highlight the preparations for the BJP's 'Vijay Yatra' from Kasaragod on February 21, Union Minister Pralhad Joshi said that the people of Kerala would understand that there was no gain for them in supporting Congress. The BJP leader alleged senior IUML leader Panakkad Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal had justified the Turkey government's controversial conversion of Istanbul's Hagia Sophia into a mosque. He also attacked the ruling CPI(M) in Kerala and the previous Congress-led UDF government, alleging both had failed to address the issues of the people.

"So far Rahul Gandhi has not uttered a single word on Sabarimala.I challenge Rahul Gandhi....what is your stand on the issue? You clarify your stand," he said.

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Pralhad Joshi reiterated BJP's vow to expose the failures of the LDF government and the earlier UDF governments and remarked that both governments had performed miserably. Further, the BJP leader announced that the Vijay Yatra in Kerala would be flagged off by UP CM Yogi Adityanath and Kerala BJP president K Surendran at Kasargod on February 21. Senior party leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah will attend the yatra when it reaches Thiruvananthapuram on March 7, he added.

READ | Kerala: PM Modi Inaugurates Development & Tourism Projects, Hails Indian Diaspora In Gulf

PM's development push to Kerala

On Sunday, PM Modi visited the state to lay the foundation stone of various development projects in Kochi where he spoke about how the new projects would further Kerala's journey to becoming 'Aatmanirbhar.' While inaugurating the Propylene Derivatives Petrochemical complex of the Kochi refinery PM said, "This project will help our journey towards becoming Aatmanirbhar. With this complex, forex will be saved, a wide range of industries would gain, and employment opportunities will be generated." 

PM Modi also spoke about furthering tourism in the state encouraging the youth to come up with innovative ideas for tourism-related projects. "I urge our young start-up friends to think about innovative tourism-related products. I also urge you all to use this time and travel to as many nearby areas as possible. You'd be happy to know that the tourism sector in India has grown well in the last five years," he said. 

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