Rahul Gandhi promises to wave off farmer loans and create jobs if congress comes to power

Congress President Rahul Gandhi has said here that the NDA government was pro-industrialists and anti-farmers, and announced that his party would waive farm loans within 10 days if it comes to power in Madhya Pradesh.

"Here Kamal Nath (MP Congress president) and Jyotiraditya Scindia (the state Congress poll campaign committee chairman) are sitting. The day the Congress comes to power in MP, count 10 days, I say with guarantee that farmers' loans will be waived within 10 days. It won't take even the eleventh day," Gandhi averred.

Further, the Congress government will take strict action against those responsible for the killings of six farmers during the protest on June 6 last year within 10 days of coming to power, he said.

Gandhi, who addressed a rally in Pipliya Mandi area here -- where six farmers had died in police firing, virtually kicked off the campaign for Assembly polls in the BJP-ruled state which are due by year-end.

The NDA government at the Centre has waived loans of Rs 2.5 lakh crore of "15 industrialists", but this government and BJP governments in states have not waived even one rupee of farm loans, the Congress chief said.

"In the entire county, farmers are demanding their rights, yelling and committing suicides, but the Modi government and BJP governments in states have little time for them," he said.

When a delegation of farmers met leaders of the previous UPA government, it waived crop loans to the tune of Rs 70,000 crore, which was a record, Gandhi said.

Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his "proximity with businessmen", he alleged that the PM has no time for farmers and the common people.

While the prime minister enjoyed sitting on a swing with the visiting Chinese President (Xi Jinping), the neighbouring country later responded to this gesture with incursion in Doklam, Gandhi said.

Accusing Modi of making false promises regarding job creation, Gandhi said that if people are using 'Made in China' mobile phones when the Congress comes to power, the party's government will ensure that cell phones in future have the tag 'Made in Mandsaur', and will create jobs for people.

He asked farmers how much they got for their garlic crop, and said the Congress government would ensure that garlic of Mandsaur was sold in Beijing.

To provide market to the farm produce and generate jobs, his party's government will set up food processing units in each district, and farmers will not have to pay commission in Mandis to sell their produce, the Congress chief said.

He called on Congress workers to go to the streets and villages and meet people. People of the country are his priority, party workers come second and Congress leaders come third, Gandhi said.

"Only someone who remains connected with people will be able to form the next government," he said.

Before addressing the meeting, Rahul spent time with the relatives of those who were killed in police firing last year.(PTI).