Patna: Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Sunday made a slew of promises for the poor and the farming community and claimed to overthrow the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.

Accompanied by alliance leaders, the Congress chief launched blistering attacks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his alleged “generosity” towards the industrialists while virtually kicking off the poll campaign through his party’s rally being held for the first time in three decades in the state.

“The moment our government comes to power at the Centre, we will ensure minimum income guarantee for every poor. A minimum amount will be credited to the bank account of every poor,” Gandhi promised, addressing his party’s rally at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan on Sunday.

He also promised to waive off loans of farmers in the whole of the country the way it was done in three Indian states where the Congress came to power in the recent assembly elections, edging out the well-entrenched BJP government.

“We don’t tell lies. We had promised to waive off loans of the farmers if winning elections in three states and implemented it within two days of forming governments there,” he said.

He hit at the Modi government for what he claimed the insult of the farming class through his budget announcements. “The PM has given Rs300 billions to industrialist Anil Ambani but a mere Rs17 to per day to the farmer of a country which is an insult,” Gandhi said, citing budget 2019 announcement of Rs6,000 minimum annual income support to farmers.

He said the Congress does what it promises. “The Congress is not like Narendra Modi. We act what we promise. The Congress brought green revolution, white revolution, computer and internet revolution, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, Right to Information, Right to Food and many more. And we again promise to work for the common men if we return to power,” he declared.

Reiterating that the demonetisation was the biggest scam of India, Modi alleged the Prime Minister handed out money to a handful of industrialists and businessmen after collecting it from the common men who had to stand in long queues for month to exchange their own money. Likewise, he alleged a big scandal in the Rafale fight jet deal and asked the masses to be alert from “chowkidar” (guard) describing the latter as a “thief”.

The Congress chief also hit out at the Modi government for fulfilling his pre-poll promises of generating 20 million jobs a year and crediting Rs1.5 million to the ban accounts of every citizen.

He said the unemployment condition in Bihar is very critical. “Bihar was once centre of learning, today it has turned into a centre of unemployment. Youths from this state are wandering across the country in search of jobs and are compelled to face humiliation,” he said. He promised to grant central university status to Patna University if coming to power in New Delhi.