Modi questions Congress on work done in the last 70 years

PM Modi dares Congress to make 'outsider' party president in Ambikapur rally

Addressing his longest rally in the state today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Ambikapur said that the Congress cannot come to accept that a "tea-seller and the son of a poor mother" has become the Prime Minister of the country.

"Now they have started a new thing... they are saying that it is because of Pandit Nehru (Jawaharlal Nehru) that it became possible for a tea-seller to become the prime minister," Modi said, referring to senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor's comment on November 14 stating that it was because of Nehru's efforts that a tea-seller can also become a prime minister.

"I am asking the Congress to make an outsider the president of their party, do that just once for five years... then I will say that Nehru ji really created a truly democratic system," Modi said.

Four generations of Congress ruled the nation and they should give an account of what they have done for the country, Modi said, adding that if the Congress is able to provide an account of their rule for four generations, "I will provide an account of my rule for the past four years."

Modi also spoke about the formation of Chhattisgarh, and said that while the Congress had indulged in politics and violence during and before the formation of Telangana, Atal Bihari Vajpayee government had created Chhattisgarh peacefully through dialogue.

The prime minister also spoke about central government policies, such as Awas Yojana, Ujwala Yojana and Ayushman Bharat, the last of which he said is going to benefit a population more than that of "the United States, Mexico and Canada" put together.

On the impressive turnout in the first phase of polling held on November 10, Modi said, "People of Bastar in Chhattisgarh gave a strong response to Naxals by registering record voting percentage in the first phase".

(With PTI inputs)