Congress will defeat land bill in Parliament: Rahul Gandhi

Jaipur, Jul 17: Sharpening his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi today vowed that his party will defeat the land bill if it comes up for passage in Parliament during the Monsoon session.

He also took at a dig at the Prime Minister, saying the people will reduce his "56-inch chest" to "5.6 inches" in six months while taking repeated jibes at the Vasundhara Raje government in Rajasthan calling it a "Lalit Modi sarkar".

The Congress Vice President's remarks come at a time when the government is planning to bring the contentious land bill in the Monsoon session of Parliament beginning next week. Addressing party workers here, Rahul vowed not to allow passage of the Land bill in Parliament even though Modi government has thrice issued ordinances to this effect.

"First time such a government has come which is helping the opposition. Whenever they get an opportunity, government is helping the Congress. On farmers' issue, they have issued an ordinance thrice.

We will not allow the land bill to be passed in Parliament, you will see. Not a single inch of land will be given.

"This 56-inch chest will turn into 5.6 inches in six months. And who will turn this into 5.6 inches, it is the Congress party, people of the country, the farmers and the labourers, you will see," Rahul said, taking a jibe at the Prime Minister's remark of "56-inch chest" made at the time of the Lok Sabha campaign.

The Congress Vice President also compared the Raje government with the British government in the pre-Independence era when the "remote" of the government was in London, an apparent reference to the beleaguered former IPL chief Lalit Modi who had earlier close links with Raje.

"The way that government's remote was in London, the same way the remote control of this government is in London. He presses the button there and here she (Vasundhara Raje) jumps," he alleged.

Accusing the Chief Minister of helping a "fugitive" who had amassed black money, he said, "She broke the Indian laws by helping a wanted fugitive, a corrupt man who made black money".

"Here it is not a Vasundhara government, but a Lalit Modi government. Everyone in Rajasthan knows, this is not a BJP government or a Vasundhara government, it is Lalit Modi government here," he charged.

PTI