New Delhi: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi laid foundation stone of a manufacturing unit for AK-203 assault rifles in Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi, which is the constituency represented by Congress President Rahul Gandhi in Parliament, the Gandhi scion accused PM of “lying” and claimed it was he who laid the foundation stone of the ordnance factory in the year 2010.

“Pradhan Mantri Ji, I laid the foundation stone of the ordnance factory in Amethi in 2010. For last several years, the factory has produced small arms. Yesterday you went to Amethi and as per your habit, you lied again. Don’t you feel ashamed?," the Congress president tweeted in Hindi on Monday morning.

In a sharp reaction to his comment, Union Minister Smriti Irani, who contested unsuccessfully against the Gandhi scion in the year 2014, but managed to give him a tough fight in his turf, said that Gandhi was so scared of the development in Amethi that he ignored the joint venture between Russia and India at Korva.

She tweeted: "You are so afraid of development in Amethi that you didn't bother to see that yesterday a joint venture was launched at Korva between India and Russia to produce AK 203 rifles.”

PM Modi on Sunday laid the foundation stone of a manufacturing unit for AK-203 assault rifles in Amethi. It was his first rally in Amethi, since coming to power in 2014.

Modi said Amethi, which has traditionally been loyal to the Gandhi family, was the best example of his government's 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' (together with all, development for all) motto.

After laying the foundation stone of the unit, he said these modern rifles will be manufactured in Amethi under a Russia-India joint venture. The AK-203 will replace the INSAS rifles being used by the Army and other forces. The immediate target is to produce 7,00,000 AK-203 rifles in the facility.

Attacking  Rahul Gandhi, without naming him, the Prime Minister said between 2009 to 2014, demands of providing 1.86 lakh bulletproof jackers for defence forces was neglected.