‘They forgot India moved ahead’: PM Modi refers to Nehru’s ‘popular picture’ to attack Priyanka

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday referred to a “popular picture” of Jawaharlal Nehru to launch a scathing attack on Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi who was on Thursday seen interacting with snake charmers in Rae Bareli.

“There was a time when the `naamdars' of the Congress used to feel happy showing snake charmers to foreign guests. There is popular picture of the first prime minister showing a snake charmer to foreign guests. It is available on social media. He was feeling proud,” said PM Modi while addressing a rally in Bikaner.

“The fourth generation of the `naamdar' family is doing this now as well,” he added. PM Modi said they forget that the country has moved ahead, and Indians hold the computer mouse now.

Accusing Priyanka of projecting an image of the country that did not sit well with the reality, Pm Modi said: “Now it is 'mouse charmers' and not 'snake charmers',” referring to the young Indians in IT sector. He did not directly name the Congress general secretary.    

He also accused the Congress of doing nothing for the welfare of the nomadic community of snake charmers.

The prime minister also mocked the “me too” Congress claim that its government had also conducted surgical strikes across the Line of Control and accused the party of telling lies.

Addressing a rally in Sikar, said the party first ignored the strikes carried out under his government and then opposed them. “Now it's me too, me too,” he said using the English term.

PM Modi's remarks on retaliatory strikes against Pakistan-based terror groups come a day after the Congress claimed that six cross-border strikes were carried out during the UPA government's term as well.