Rajnath Singh dubs Rahul Gandhi ’best finisher’ of Indian politics: ’Like MS Dhoni...’

Union minister Rajnath Singh dubbed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi the ‘best finisher’ in Indian politics during a poll rally on Saturday. The senior BJP leader likened him to cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni and suggested that the Wayanad MP had vowed not to stop until he ‘finished’ the Grand Old Party. Singh also noted that the party now held ‘only two or three small states’ and appeared to have an "unbreakable" relationship with corruption.

"I sometimes wonder why this is happening, and I reach this conclusion. Who is the best finisher in cricket? (After people replied) Dhoni. If anyone asks me who is the best finisher in Indian politics, I will say it is Rahul Gandhi. This is the reason several leaders have left Congress," the senior BJP leader said.

The Union Minister also batted for ‘one-nation, one-election’ during a poll rally in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district. The lawmaker claimed that this would save time and resources, and essentially strengthen Indian democracy. He opined that polls should be held twice in five years — once for local bodies, followed by those for assemblies and the Lok Sabha.

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Singh also highlighted many initiatives and changes wrought by the Narendra Modi-led government over the past decade — from contruction of Ayodhya Ram Mandir to abrogation of Article 370 and ban on triple talaq. The defence minister also stressed India's relationship with its neighbours, noting that the country was no longer ‘weak’. 

“We want to maintain good relations with the neighbouring countries, because (former prime minister) Atal Bihari Vajpayee used to say that one can change one's friends but not the neighbours. We follow this (dictum). But if anyone tries to promote terrorism in our country, we will give a befitting reply,” he said.

(With inputs from agencies)