Rahul Gandhi on Monday led the opposition attack in the Lok Sabha on the government over the problems being faced by farmers, saying it had "failed" them and specifically targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over it.
In his first speech in the Budget session, the Congress vice president said the government was "ignoring" the farming community and favouring the industrialists and rich people, which was a "blunder" as the farmers will 'harm" BJP in future.
"The acche din government has failed the country" on the issue of farmers, he said while participating in a short duration discussion on 'The agrarian situation in the country'.
He said farmers are responsible for laying the "foundation" for whatever the country has achieved but they are being ignored by the government.
Taking digs at the Prime Minister, he said Modi "should switch over to the side of farmers and labourers from that of high and mighty and industrialists" as it will benefit BJP politically and harm Congress.
"I will offer an advice to the Prime Minister. He will gain politically if he changes sides as farmers are over 67 per cent of population. You are making a blunder by harming farmers and labourers and they will harm you in future. If you switch over to their side it will help you and may harm us," he said.
Rahul, who was absent in the House during the first part of the Budget session as he was away, said he has been wondering over the Prime Minister's policies, which were "affecting" farmers, since Modi knows the "political calculations" and has just won the elections.
"Then it occurred to me that the price of farmers' land has been rising and your corporate friends covet these lands.
You are weakening the farmers now and then use this axe of land ordinance to hit them," he said, charging that the government wanted to acquire land to help industrialists.
Amid continuous uproar and clashes between the treasury and opposition benches, Rahul cited figures to underline that farmers and agriculture are being neglected under the NDA.
He said the agriculture sector grew by only one percent during the 10-month-old Modi government and had grown by 2.6% during the previous NDA government.
He accused the government of giving out contradictory figures about the damages suffered by farmers during the recent unseasonal rains and said BJP would function like this as it was used to speaking different voices.
At this, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh intervened to say that figures were different as the states had revised these.
Later, Rahul told reporters outside the Parliament House that "the basic point is that the government doesn't understand the pain of the farmers and common people."
In the House, he said the 10-year UPA regime had ensured sharp rise in the MSPs of wheat, rice and sugarcane. While wheat MSP shot up from Rs 640 to 1400 per quintal and that of rice and sugarcane rose from Rs 560 and Rs 73 to Rs 1310 and Rs 220 respectively, he said.
During the present government, the MSP of wheat has been raised by only Rs 50, sugarcane by Rs 10 and cotton by Rs 50, Gandhi said.
Gandhi's attack comes a day after Congress launched an all-out war on the government over the controversial land bill in a farmers' rally on Sunday which was addressed by party president Sonia Gandhi besides a host of other senior leaders, including him.
Meanwhile, Congress President Sonia Gandhi has said that the party will keep raising farmers issues after holding deliberations with all Lok Sabha MPs of the party including Rahul Gandhi.
"We will keep raising farmers issues," the Congress President said on Monday after meeting party MPs during which the party finalized the issues it wanted to raise during the week in the House.
Replying to a question about Rahul Gandhi's speech in Lok Sabha, she said "I did not hear the full speech of Rahul as I was busy meeting party leaders and farmers at my residence. But I was told by people it was good."
"It's good", Sonia Gandhi said when asked by reporters on her view on Rahul's comeback.
Read: Rahul, Sonia Gandhi tear into Modi's land bill at farmers' rally
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