PATNA: Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday claimed that her party was now fighting the same battle against the “Modi empire” that Mahatma Gandhi once fought against the British imperialists.

Addressing back-to-back events in Bihar’s Kadwa (Katihar), Purnia and Barari in the Muslim-dominated Seemanchal region, Vadra hit out at Modi for using words like ‘katta’ (country-made pistol) that she said were unbecoming of a Prime Minister. She also noted how, on one hand, the PM was hailing ‘Vande Mataram’, which stood for non-violence, and on the other, he was using words that hurt the dignity of his office and position.

The Congress general secretary held the NDA government in Bihar responsible for the sorry state of affairs in the state. “The lack of opportunities in Bihar has forced its youth to seek jobs in other parts of the country,” she said. She also blamed demonetisation and the faulty implementation of GST for the collapse of small- and medium-scale businesses, which destroyed employment opportunities.

Vadra also slammed the NDA government for allegedly handing over all public sector undertakings to PM Modi’s “two corporate friends”.

“The NDA leaders keep talking about the seven decades of Congress rule in India. They should know that the Congress governments of the past built institutes like IITs, IIMs and AIIMS,” she stressed.