The Congress party on Tuesday alleged that Union Home Minister Amit Shah had disseminated false information during his recent campaign visit to poll-bound Chhattisgarh. Shah's speech, delivered in Rajnandgaon city, prompted a sharp rebuke from the Congress, asserting that he had made inaccurate claims about the establishment of key educational and healthcare institutions in the country.
In a statement posted on social media, the Congress party stated, "Amit Shah is two steps ahead of PM Modi in telling lies. Amit Shah had reached Chhattisgarh yesterday. Here, while spreading lies in the election rally, he said that IIT, IIM, AIIMS were built by BJP in the country. Whereas the truth is that the work of giving 'IIT, IIM, AIIMS' to India was done by Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru. They have become habituated to lying."
Amit Shah, while addressing the crowd in Rajnandgaon, asserted that during the Congress rule, the undivided Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh region was underperforming and categorised as a 'BIMARU' (laggard) state. He credited the transformation of the region into an educational, power, cement, and healthcare hub to the BJP's governance, under the leadership of former chief minister Raman Singh.
Shah claimed, "The BJP was the first to make NIT, IIT, IIIT, IIM, AIIMS, and Livelihood Colleges whereas CM Bhupesh did the work of running a '30 Taka Bhupesh Kaka' government for five years."
Additionally, Shah accused Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel of misappropriating funds meant for the tribal and Dalit youth of Chhattisgarh, characterising the state as the "ATM of 'Delhi darbar'."
It is uncertain whether Shah meant to imply that these institutes were initially established by the BJP in Chhattisgarh or in the entire country.
Chhattisgarh, established as a separate state in 2000, underwent initial governance by Congress leader Ajit Jogi, who served as the first chief minister until 2003. Subsequently, Raman Singh held the top post for 15 years from 2003 to 2018, and Bhupesh Baghel is the incumbent chief minister.
Key educational institutions mentioned in the speech include the National Institute of Technology, Raipur (NIT), inaugurated on March 14, 1963, by India's first Prime Minister, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru.
The International Institute of Information Technology, Naya Raipur (IIIT-NR), commenced its first academic session in August 2015. IIT Bhilai was established in the state in 2016, according to its official website. The Indian Institute of Management (IIM) was set up by the Government of India in 2010, inaugurated by then-Chief Minister Raman Singh. Skill Development Training Centers were established under the State Project of Livelihood College in July 2013.
These allegations and counterclaims have arisen as Chhattisgarh gears up for a two-phase election in November, underscoring the high stakes and heightened political rhetoric in the Congress-ruled state.