"Congress leaders have yet again proved they are no different from the Mughals when it comes to handing over power. We don't want their Aurangzeb rule," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said, addressing a rally in Dharampur on Monday.
Quoting senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar's remarks about the Mughal dynasty, Modi said, "A senior Congress leader, Mani Shankar Aiyar, had said 'did elections take place during Mughal rule? When Shahjahan replaced Jehangir, was there any election? When Aurangzeb took over from Shahjahan, were there any elections? It is understood that the son will be given the rule.' Congress leaders accept that the Congress is a family party."
"I congratulate the Congress for their Aurangzeb rule, but we don't want it," Modi said in one of the sharpest remarks during the ongoing election campaign.
On the day when the Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi filed his nomination for election as Congress party president, Modi said, "The one who is facing corruption charges and is out on bail, is being made party president. We can imagine what kind of culture they will propagate."
On the Congress' minority appeasement politics, Modi hit out at the party saying, "Why has the Congress stopped saying BJP is anti-Muslim? Earlier, they would go out of the way to show their secularism, but now we are all seeing what they are doing in this election, where they are going. Unfortunately for them, Muslims know their real nature."
"The people are our high command and we put people service at the top. Those who have looted the poor, I will return everything that belongs to the poor."
Without referring to the ongoing reservation agitation by Patidar youth, Modi said it was the BJP which gave constitutional status to the OBC Commission. "Why did the Congress not give Constitutional status to the OBC Commission? We got a bill but when we did so, they stalled it in the Rajya Sabha. This anti-OBC Congress should be severely punished by the people," he said.
On the second day of his two-day visit to his home state, Modi has lined up four public rallies at Jamnagar, Junagadh and Bhavnagar, besides the one held in Dharampur in south Gujarat. The districts will go to polls in the first phase on December 9.
The Prime Minister will again visit the state from December 6 to 9, covering South and Central Gujarat regions, as well as Saurashtra.