Rahul captive of the Leftists doesn't understand India's ideology culture Ex-MP CM Chouhan

    Bhopal, Apr 19 (PTI) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is a "captive" of the Leftists and doesn't know the culture and ideology of India, senior BJP leader and former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Friday.
    Speaking to reporters, Chouhan also claimed Congress leaders were shying away from contesting Lok Sabha polls and Rahul Gandhi himself had fled from his traditional Amethi seat in Uttar Pradesh to Wayanad in Kerala. Gandhi is the sitting MP from Wayanad.
    "Rahul Gandhi is a captive of the Leftists. He doesn't know India's basic culture and ideology," Chouhan told reporters in Raisen before filing his nomination from Vidisha Lok Sabha seat accompanied by his wife Sadhna Singh and BJP's Lok Sabha poll in-charge Mahendra Singh.
    "How can a leader ensure victory of others when he himself is not capable of winning," he said in a jibe at Gandhi.
    Pointing out that former Congress chief Sonia Gandhi had taken the Rajya Sabha route to Parliament and was not contesting the 2024 Lok Sabha polls from her Raebareli seat, Chouhan said the Congress does not have leadership, direction or vision.
    The Congress had opposed the fight against terror, scrapping of Article 370 in Jammu-Kashmir, as well as surgical and air strikes to eliminate terrorists, he said.
    The former MP CM brushed aside Rahul Gandhi's criticism of the BJP's manifesto by claiming the latter does not understand Hindi or English.
    "Everything is written clearly in the Sankalp Patra, but he is unable to understand it. We can't make him understand by releasing it in Italian," he said in a sarcastic vein.
    The Congress, during its long rule, had not done anything for development, which had taken place at a rapid pace in the last 10 years under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the senior BJP leader asserted.
    "In order to oppose the BJP and PM Modi, the Congress opposed Lord Ram and declined the invite to the idol consecration of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya on January 22," Chouhan said.
    Lok Sabha polls will be held on May 7 in Vidisha, where Chouhan is pitted against former MP Pratap Bhanu Sharma.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)