Fadnavis slams Rahul for Dharavi project remark; calls him 'anti-poor'

Gadchiroli: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of being "anti-poor" for the latter's remark about the multi-crore Dharavi slum redevelopment project.

During an election rally in Amravati for the November 20 assembly polls, Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, targeted the BJP, alleging that the Dharavi land worth crores of rupees was handed to industrialist Gautam Adani.

He claimed the Maha Vikas Aghadi government was stolen by the use of money as it was a deal for the Dharavi project.

Countering the charge, Fadnavis said the Congress wanted to ensure that poor people remain poor.

"Rahul Gandhi is anti-poor. He doesn't want the people of Dharavi to get homes. Rajiv Gandhi had made an announcement for Dharavi, and these people were in power for 25 years after that, but no work was done," the deputy chief minister said.

He claimed, "Dharavi hasn't been handed over to Adani. It has been given to the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP), in which the state government is also a partner. The entire process is transparent. Uddhav Thackeray had decided the tender conditions."