Bangalore, April 18 (IANS) Targeting the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the infamous attack on young women at a Mangalore pub, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi said Friday evening that the BJP speaks about Indian culture 'but condones beating of women'.
'Our opposition talks about Indian culture but condones the beating of women. Their activists go out and beat women,' Rahul Gandhi said at a rally here, attacking the BJP which is in power in Karnataka.
He was referring to the Jan 24 incident when members of a Hindu group, Sri Rama Sene, beat up young women at a Mangalore pub saying they were violating Indian traditions.
The pub attack, and more incidents of moral policing, have attracted widespread criticism.
Rahul Gandhi also launched an attack on the BJP's prime ministerial candidate L.K. Advani over the 1999 Kandahar plane hijack, wondering how Advani, who was then the Indian home minister, was not aware that three dreaded terrorists were released in exchange for the air passengers.
'The BJP talks about terror and says that the prime minister (Manmohan Singh) does not take on terrorists. Today when we ask then union home minister (L.K.Advani) why the terrorists were released, he says he was not aware.
'The Congress government captured the terrorists in the nineties. But Advani did not know why they were released. Either his PM (Atal Bihari Vajpayee) did not trust him or he (Advani) knew that the terrorists were released. So you decide who is weak and who is strong.
'I know our prime minister (Manmohan Singh) will never ever bow in front of terrorists,' Rahul Gandhi said.
He also said that India's tech hub, Bangalore, had the talent and potential to leave behind the Silicon Valley in the US over the next 15-20 years, but expressed worry over the crumbling infrastructure.
'We have to focus on the infrastructure. I am sad to say that the current government has not focused on the infrastructure. The power of the city will grow once if is connected to Karnataka on one hand and rest of the world on the other hand. Such connectivity will enable the people of this city to live up to its true potential,' he pointed out.
He also blamed the state government for not utilising the funds sanctioned by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.
'The UPA government tried to help Bangalore by sending huge amount of money. Of that, nearly Rs.10 billion (Rs.1000 crore) has remained unspent. Money is there but the BJP government not doing anything about it. We in Delhi are not deterred. Over the next year, we are going to send Rs.110 billion (Rs.11,000 crore) even though the present government is not going to use a lot of that money. I can also predict that a lot of that money will disappear,' Gandhi added.
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