The Congress on Sunday asked Narendra Modi why he needed to play the victim to seek voter sympathy instead of asking for votes on his governance record, calling out the Prime Minister’s complaint that he faced Opposition abuse every day.

“Is desh mein Gandhi ko goli mili hai (Bullets were pumped into Gandhi’s chest in this country),” Kanhaiya Kumar said, responding to a question about Modi’s lament at a rally on Saturday that he faced “gaali” (abuse) every day.

“This is a bogus discourse; Modi is trying to play the victim card instead of honouring the mandate of the people. What difference does it make if the Opposition abuses him? The people have voted for him. Not once, but twice. He should explain to the people why he has not fulfilled the promises he made to them,” the Congress leader said.

The Prime Minister had said at a rally in Telangana that he received 2-3kg of “gaali” every day but that God had given him the ability to transform the abuse into nutrition and positive energy for himself.

The Congress views Modi’s claim as a desperate attempt to gain sympathy in the context of the ongoing Assembly elections. Himachal Pradesh, where the BJP is grappling with strong anti-incumbency, voted hours after Modi’s “gaali’ grudge. Gujarat, where he had during a previous election used Mani Shankar Aiyar’s label of “neech” to play the victim, votes next month.

The Congress social media head, Supriya Shrinate, tweeted: “After all, what’s the compulsion of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he has to repeatedly play the victim card during the Gujarat elections? He should be able to boldly demand votes for good governance in this ‘Amrit Kal’. We don’t know why he can’t talk about his good work. Ultimately, the victim card!”

Kanhaiya said: “This country gave ‘goli’ to Gandhi. And photographs of those who gave ‘goli’ to Gandhi hang in their (RSS-BJP) offices. It is ironic that he spreads hate, promotes people who spread hate, follows people (on social media) who abuse everybody and then plays the victim card. The point is that Modi always creates issues to divert the nation’s attention from the real concerns.”

The Prime Minister should discuss the economy, unemployment, high prices, women’s security, adequate prices for farmer’s crops, the rising hatred and communal tension in society but is wasting his time on irrelevant issues, Kanhaiya said.

“We have gathered during the Bharat Jodo Yatra that people are deeply troubled by high prices and the absence of jobs. We request the BJP to ensure that the electoral discourse revolves around substantive issues. There is a rising sense of insecurity among the youth. We must address fundamental issues instead of misleading people,” said Kanhaiya, a designated Bharat Yatri who had come to Delhi on Sunday, a Yatra rest day.

To a question about the changing perception of Rahul Gandhi after the Yatra, Kanhaiya said: “Before we started the Yatra, people made fun of us, telling us, ‘Your leader (Rahul) can’t do this, he will go abroad, he is not a serious politician’. The false image created through WhatsApp messages and TV debates lies shattered as millions of people now have first-hand experience of Rahul Gandhi. The reality of Rahul Gandhi has come to the fore, his true self has been seen by the people.”

“Truth doesn’t need any proof. India has seen the real Rahul Gandhi. Those countless images of compassionate moments with children, women, elders… anybody who is a victim of injustice, whose hopes have crashed, who is deprived… is coming to him. Unemployed youth, civil society members, writers, retired judges, actors, activists are joining him with hope,” Kanhaiya said.

“The question is not whether his stature has risen or fallen. His reality has emerged through the veneer of false propaganda. The lies about him have evaporated.”

The party’s communications chief, Jairam Ramesh, had made a similar assertion a few days ago, claiming that the true Rahul Gandhi was being seen by the people. “Rahul is not a product that needs repackaging; he represents an ideology. People are now seeing his true commitments and character,” Ramesh had said.