SHILLONG: It is election season in Meghalaya and heated exchanges between parties and leaders are far from uncommon. To spice up their diatribe politicians are not shying away from using Biblical allusions and parallels. The ruling Congress has termed the political parties allegedly supporting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as “Judas in operation” while urging the people to be careful in choosing their representatives in the upcoming Assembly polls.
Speaking to the media here on Monday, AICC national spokesman Tom Vaddakan said parties supporting the BJP, tacitly or otherwise, “have sold their souls and now their bodies are on sale. These are the people who have compromised with the devil because of power.”
“Meghalaya is now the test ground for what will happen in future. If Meghalaya surrenders, the whole country will surrender,” he said while slamming the BJP over its charge-sheet against the Congress saying the BJP is criticising Congress for not introducing Lokpal in Meghalaya – although it is a fact that the state has high standards of auditing and transparency – whereas the BJP had not implemented Lokpal even in Delhi when in power.
Asserting that the Congress will protect the culture and interests of the people, Tom took a dig at the saffron party saying that it does not have the wherewithal to sweep the elections.
“They (BJP-NPP) are one and the same and this is a front which is trying to come to power through the backdoor. This backdoor strategy is what they have mastered and they are misusing the Constitution. We have seen that in Goa. All I am saying is that Judas is in town. So be careful,” he said.
Tom also slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying the PM made tall claims of demonetisation rooting out black money, stopping the circulation of fake notes and putting an end to terrorism. Instead it turned out to be independent India’s biggest financial scam that burned a hole in people’s pockets, he said.
Castigating the Centre over the shoddy implementation of GST, the Congress spokesperson said it was used as a surgical strike on the common man, even as course corrections were being undertaken on the eve of the Gujarat elections by handing out goodies to those affected by GST.
“Today petrol prices have hit the roof while international prices remain stable. This has had a cascading effect on prices. The inflationary effect has affected every homemaker’s budget,” he added.
