Bengaluru, April 17 : Criticising the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said the party runs the government for '20-25 select people' while the grand old party looks after the welfare of everyone, including the underprivileged and the farmers.

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Addressing a massive public rally at Mandya in Karnataka, Rahul Gandhi said: "The upcoming elections is a fight between two ideologies. We, the Congress, run the government for the poor, farmers, women, labourers, businessmen... and they (referring to the BJP) run the government for 20 to 25 select people.

"On one side there is the Congress which gave the Constitution and democracy to 'Hindustan' and on the other side there is the RSS and the BJP... they are finishing off the democracy and installing their people in every institution of this country."

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The Wayanad MP said that if his party is voted to power at the Centre, it would immediately take up some key steps.

"A legally guaranteed minimum support price will be given to farmers besides working towards waiving off the loans of farmers. The insurance claims will be settled in 30 days.

"Today, in Karnataka, women get Rs 2,000 every month. Women will take care of the future of the country and future generations. If a man works for eight hours, women will work for 16 hours. In this direction, annually, the Congress-led government would deposit Rs 1 lakh into the account of a woman in the family," the former Congress president said.

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Further addressing the rally, Rahul Gandhi said: "You are getting Rs 24,000 annually now. After the election, our government is going to come, and you will get Rs 1.24 lakh deposited into your accounts. Every poor family will get a Rs 10,500 deposit every month into their accounts. This will change the lives of crores of families, and it is going to be a revolutionary step.

"We are going to fix Rs 400 as minimum wage. Job security is not assured for employees hired on a contract basis, and we are going to end hiring on a contract basis in the public and private sectors," Rahul Gandhi said.

"You might remember we had promised five guarantees during the Karnataka Assembly polls last year. I am happy to share that all promises have been delivered," he added.

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The Congress has fielded Venkataramane Gowda, also known as Star Chandru, from Mandya in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls 

(IANS)