Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses at an election rally at Sonepur in Odisha on Friday. (ANI)

In a fresh attack on the Congress, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said that the party and its allies are contesting the Lok Sabha elections to give free hand to the terrorists and separatists.

PM Modi said the BJP is in the fray to punish terrorists and separatists for their sins. The prime minister was addressing a rally in Balod district, which is part of the Durg Lok Sabha constituency in Chhattisgarh.

Calling the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act a “Suraksha Kavach” (armour)) of the armed forces, PM Modi slammed the Congress for promising review of the law if the party is voted to power in the Lok Sabha polls.

He said only a strong government can punish terrorists not the government which gives free hands to separatists. “When there is a strong government, there is surgical strike and air strike and the world listens to us.” Modi added.

The prime minister also took potshot at Congress president Rahul Gandhi for filing nomination from Wayanad Lok Sabha seat in Kerala. Gandhi has won from Amethi Lok Sabha seat in Uttar Pradesh for three consecutive terms since 2004.

“The dynast of the Congress ran away to find a safe seat,” said PM Modi. This is not the first time PM Modi has targeted Gandhi for filing nomination from Wayanad.

Earlier, PM Modi had said that Gandhi decided to contest from a seat where “majority is in minority” as he feared backlash over coining of “Hindu terror” by the previous Congress-led government.

On Congress’s ‘chowkidar’ against him, the prime minister said, “Do you want a government of chowkidar or a procession of corrupt (Bhrastachariyon ki baraat)?”

He targeted the Congress alleging that the party, which formed government in Chhattisgarh last year, gave “false” assurance of loan waiver to the farmers of the state. In the assembly election held in November last year, the Congress ended 15-year-rule of the BJP primarily on the promise of loan waiver.

Responding to PM Modi’s charge, senior Congress leader and spokesperson RP Singh said that he has misled people of this country and is misleading now also.

“As far as the issue of contesting polls from two seats constituencies is concerned, Atal Bihar Vajpayee (the late BJP leader and former prime minister) contested from three seats and even Modiji himself contested from two seats,” Singh said.

On the question of Congress’s promise made during the assembly election, he said, “The Chhattisgarh government has fulfilled all promises made to the people and everyone knows this. Modiji is losing this election and hence he has lost his mental balance.”