Rahul, on 2-day Chhattisgarh visit, gives pep talk to Congmen

Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi today accused the BJP of "running after power" and asked his party workers to strengthen the organisation ahead of next year's Assembly polls.

Gandhi, who arrived here on a two-day visit to Bastar district of Chhattisgarh, addressed the party workers and asked them to strengthen the Congress ahead of the 2018 state Assembly polls.

Earlier, he was welcomed at the airstrip by state Congress chief Bhupesh Baghel and Leader of Opposition in the Assembly T S Singhdeo among other party leaders.

From there, Gandhi proceeded to the Ganpati Resort, where he addressed Congress leaders and workers from Bastar.

Besides, he had a separate interaction with the workers of the Youth Congress and the party's women's wing.

Addressing the closed-door gathering, Gandhi slammed the BJP and egged on the Congressmen to defeat the saffron party with the "power of truth".

"They (BJP) keep on telling lies in a way that they appear to be true to the people. All of them tell the same lie again and again to secure power. The truth is, they are running after power and have nothing to do with the truth," a senior party leader quoted Gandhi as saying.

Referring to the Congress workers as an "army of truth" Gandhi, according to the leader, said, "Only truth can beat lies and you are going to do this."

Launching a scathing attack on the ruling BJP in Chhattisgarh, the 47-year-old Amethi MP accused it of involvement in scams and committing atrocities on Dalits and tribals for the sake of remaining in power.

Later in the evening, he met senior party leaders and office-bearers at the Circuit House here.

Tomorrow, the Congress vice-president is scheduled to address a workshop of party workers. Later in the day, he is also scheduled to address a public rally.

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)