Taking a dig at the BJP leader, who is also the head of the prominent mutt in Gorakhpur named after Saint Gorakhnath, Gandhi said, “You take any section of society, be it Dalits, weavers or Brahmins, everybody has been exploited. The administration of Yogi Adityanath ji is working completely against the ‘vichaar’ (teachings) of Guru Gorakhnath.”

Hitting out at Adityanath, five-time MP from Gorakhpur, the Congress general secretary said the healthcare system in the district is dismal. “As elections are approaching, we are hearing that AIIMS will be made functional. But nothing happened for five years. So how do you expect that it will be done now?” she said, speaking at a rally in Gorakhpur.

Slamming the Centre on privatisation, Priyanka said that the roads, airports and railways made by the Congress were being “sold”. “They ask what has been done in 70 years, I say that the hard work of 70 years has been done away within seven years,” she said.

She also took a swipe at Union Home Minister Amit Shah for his reported statement that criminals cannot be spotted even with binoculars in UP under Yogi’s rule. She said that Union MoS Ajay Mishra, whose son has been arrested for allegedly running over farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri, was standing beside Shah when the Union minister made this assertion.

“Amit Shah should use spectacles instead of binoculars to see the reality in the state, and act sternly against his deputy,” she said.

कांग्रेस प्रतिज्ञा रैली, गोरखपुर।
जनता की हुंकार, परिवर्तन की बयार। pic.twitter.com/Jq6T4U1v3N

— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) October 31, 2021

Lashing out at the previous governments in the state, Gandhi alleged that sugar mills established by the Congress, were closed down by the Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party governments. “Today they say that the Congress has joined hands with the BJP. I want to ask them where were they when people were struggling. In times of crisis, only the Congress fights. And today, from this dais, I am saying that I will die, but will never join hands with the BJP,” she declared.

Targeting the present government over price rise, she said, “Since the BJP government has come to power at the Centre, the income of many families has decreased. The farmer is earning Rs 27 a day, while the billionaire friends of the prime minister are earning Rs 1,000 crore in a day,” she alleged.

Urging the people of the poll-bound state to bring a change, Priyanka Gandhi said the time has come to question their faith in leaders who have “played with their feelings in the name of religion and caste”.

“Time has come to question the faith which we have reposed in our leaders, who made so many promises but have not fulfilled even one. Time has come for a change in the state. If you do not become aware and do not raise questions, then UP will not be able to come out of this ‘khaai’ (ravine). The truth is that they have played with your feelings in the name of religion and caste. For a leader, the biggest religion is that of ‘sewa’ (service),” she said.

Reaching out to farmers and fishermen, she said, “If the Congress is voted to power, then fisheries will be given the status of agriculture. The rights of people of the Nishad community will be restored in sand mining and fisheries. Apart from this, a university named after Guru Machendranath will also be set up.”

She promised that the loans of farmers will be waived fully and the minimum support price (MSP)of cereals will be increased. “The entire loans of farmers will be waived. Wheat and paddy will be purchased at Rs 2,500 per quintal, while sugarcane will be purchased at Rs 400 per quintal. The problem of stray cattle will be resolved on the lines of Chhattisgarh, and a complete solution will be evolved,” she said.

The MSP for wheat has been recently fixed by the government at Rs 2,015 per quintal, while that of paddy (common) is at Rs 1,940 per quintal.

The Congress general secretary also offered government jobs to 20 lakh youths and regularisation of contractual workers once Congress comes to power. “Anganwadi workers will get an honorarium of Rs 10,000, and women will get three free cylinders in a year,” Gandhi promised. “Apart from this, if voted to power, our government will bear the cost of treatment of any illness up to Rs 10 lakh,” she added.

The Congress leader also said that Rs 25,000 will be given to families who have lost their livelihood to the Covid pandemic.

–With PTI inputs