War of words over Modi's taunt

• Nitish Kumar asks why somebody should object to burqas
• Yashwant advises Modi to refrain from communal debate
• Ajay Maken debunks Gujarat State's development model

Anita Saluja New Delhi: In what appeared to be a trailer of a bitter and acrimonious campaign for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, that is all set to be Modi versus the Rest, Gujarat Chief Minister was targeted and confronted for his communal agenda. He was attacked not only by the Congress but also by his arch-rival in Bihar, JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar, and by his own party leader Yashwant Sinha, who advised him to keep away from secular versus communal debate.

The Congress on Monday launched an all-out offensive against BJP Campaign Committee Chairman Narendra Modi, the leader whom the ruling party preferred to ignore even during the Assembly elections in Gujarat. With Modi confronting the Congress day-in and day-out, the Congress has decided to take him head-on, by exposing him on communalism and debunking his claims on development.

Hitting out at his remarks that the Congress was hiding behind the veil (burqa) of secularism, AICC General Secretary Ajay Maken declared "The burqa (veil) of secularism is far better than the naked dance of communalism. Communalism breaks the country and secularism binds the nation."

Similarly Information & Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari lashed out at Modi saying that those who are against him (Modi) he wants to crush them under the wheels of communalism. Minister of State for Human Resources Development, Shashi Tharoor, went to add that the RSS khaki shorts were inspired by the Italian Fascists of 1920s. "Modi says we hide behind the burqa of secularism. Preferable, surely, to the khaki shorts of intolerance and hatred that he now tries to hide."

If that was not enough, Modi's arch-rival, JD (U) leader and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar joined the chorus saying, "The burqa is a veil worn by Muslim women. If women of one community wear the burqa, then why is somebody objecting to that. Even Hindu women follow this system of covering their heads." Not to be left behind was Yashwant Sinha from his own party, who advised Modi not to indulge in secular versus communal divide as it would only divert the attention from the real issues confronting the nation on economic slowdown and corruption.

It was only recently that Modi had drawn flak from all the quarters for his "puppy" analogy while referring to the 2002 riots. Modi had stated that he was so compassionate that even if a puppy comes under the wheel of the car, where he is sitting in the backseat, he feels sad. His puppy analogy was inferred as a derogatory reference to the Muslims killed in the riots.

Not sparing him on his claims of Gujarat development model, the Congress gave a point-by-point rebuttal. In a rare confrontationist mood, Maken took on Modi and dared him to defend the dismal record of Vajpayee Government from 1998-2004 and his own lackluster performance as Gujarat Chief Minister for the past 10 years. He should talk on what he has actually done in Gujarat, before proceeding to suggest changes at the Centre.

Ajay Maken pointed out that during the NDA regime, 1.67 per cent of GDP was spent on education, while it was 4.02 per cent under the Congress-led UPA Government. In Gujarat, the net enrollment ratio was 48.77 per cent, while under the UPA, it has gone up from 62.5 per cent to 82.5 per cent in primary education.

Under the UPA, literacy rate has gone up from 64.8 per cent to 74 per cent. Number of Central Universities has gone up from 17 to 44, IITs from 7 to 16 and IIMs from 6 to 13. As regards the condition of higher education in Gujarat, out of the 16 degree engineering colleges, there are only four regular principals and among the 26 diploma engineering colleges, there are only four regular principals. Nearly 67 per cent vacancies are there at the level of senior faculty. Out of the 187 schools, nearly 125 school principal posts are vacant. This is Modi's track-record on education.

Reacting to Modi's dig that what is required is not Food Security Bill but food for the people, Maken said Modi's commitment can be seen from his record on the midday meal scheme. While the national average is 92.06 per cent, Gujarat average is 89.94. Two or three States are more backward, like Punjab and West Bengal, he said.

Responding to Modi's remarks that the Congress has made a mess of the CWG, Maken said as former Sports Minister he would ask what Modi has done for Gujarat. While 83 qualified for Olympics, how many were from Gujarat, he asked. While in all six gold medals were won, with four going to Haryana, Gujarat drew a blank. Out of the total 1479 medals, Gujarat tally was seven, while Chandigarh got 10. This is so in spite of the fact that Gujarat has produced great sportspersons in the past and the people of Gujarat have keen interest in sports.