Against the backdrop of arrest of his close aide Amit Shah by the Central Bureau of Investigation in Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi took a dig on Thursday at Congress saying the party will have to field officers of the investigating agency in coming municipal polls.
Modi claimed Congress had already conceded defeated in the municipal elections in the state and will have to field candidates from the investigating agency to win the polls.
"Given all the activities that have been going on the in the state, I feel that Congress in the state has conceded defeat in the forthcoming municipal elections," Modi said after inaugurating an over-bridge named after late BJP leader Bhairon Singh Shekhawat in Isanpur area in New Delhi.
"Now Congress will have to field CBI officers as candidates for the local body polls," he said.
Modi said, "No political game using CBI will bring success in Gujarat".
"Peace is prevailing in Gujarat for the last 10 years. Some people envy the progress and peace in Gujarat. But you should remember that people of Gujarat will not tolerate those who are coming in the way of the state's progress. I want to achieve peace through development," he added.
The BJP leader said though there was a need for healthy competition for development among the states and cities, "it is unfortunate that Delhi (central government) does not even have hopes that can create an atmosphere of healthy competition in the country."
Criticising the Congress government in Delhi for its failure to meet the deadlines relating to preparations for the forthcoming Commonwealth Games (CWG) in the national capital, Modi said it was a "shame" that there was no progress.
"For the last one week, I have been watching news about the preparations for the CWG. One by one, Congress leaders are alleging corruption of thousands of crores of rupees. They had four years to prepare for the CWG and now with just four months to go there is no sign of progress," he alleged.
If the work for creating infrastructure for CWG was given to the officers of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), they would have completed it in two years time, he added.
"CWG in India is something that we need to take pride in. But the Delhi government has failed in preparing for it, which is a shame," Modi said.
The chief minister said Gujarat was committed to development. "It (Gujarat) has worked to bring change in the lives of the poor. Be it city or village, there has been concerted efforts by the state to achieve new heights of development," he claimed.
"The reason behind Gujarat's progress was the combined efforts of the state administration and the people to achieve the goal of development," he added.
Modi also criticised the Centre for alleged corruption in the implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme.
