Leader of opposition in the Gujarat assembly, Shaktisinh Gohil, on Wednesday kicked off his election campaign with a public meeting at Rajpara Khodiyar that was attended by top leaders of the state Congress.

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Speaking at the meeting, Gohil accused chief minister Narendra Modi of making false promises.

“Seven years ago, during a visit to Bhavnagar, the chief minister had made an announcement about the Kalpasar project. Two months later, at another public meeting in Dholera, he had declared that the BJP would build a massive port there. Neither Dholera nor Kalpasar has materialized so far,” said Gohil.

Gohil went on to promise that if the Congress comes to power after the assembly elections, “we will give 12 subsidised gas cylinders; 16 hours of constant electricity for farmers; abolish VAT on fertilizers; and reduce VAT on petrol, diesel and CNG.”

He further said that Gujarat’s progress had not taken place overnight.

“It is the result of the effort of the people and earlier governments but this chief minister keeps claiming that only he had brought progress to the state. From 1995 to 2001, Keshubhai Patel was the chief minister of Gujarat and he belongs to the BJP. Under him too the state had progressed but Modi makes no mention of Patel’s tenure,” Gohil said.

In his speech at the meeting, Shankarsinh Vaghela praised Gohil and urged voters to vote for the Congress if they had faith in the party’s promises and not in the BJP’s ‘false promises”. GPCC president Arjun Modhwadia asked his party workers to campaign for Gohil because “we need leaders like him on every seat.”