NEW DELHI: Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today quizzed Rahul Gandhi on his knowledge of farming and agriculture and asked if the Congress chief knows how onions are grown.

"Congress had left the state (Madhya Pradesh) plagued with diseases. What does he (Rahul Gandhi) know? He has not even seen the streets of a village. He can't even tell if chilies and onion are grown over the ground or below it," Chouhan said during the 'Jan Ashirwaad Rally' in Ujjain, according to ANI.

The chief minister also slammed Congress leader Kamal Nath for 'writing' to Lord Shiva to seek an end to the "misrule" in Madhya Pradesh. Chouhan said such "shallow" tactics have caused the opposition party's downfall.

"My friend in the Congress is opposing (us) for no reason. After being unable to find any fault with me, he wrote a letter to Lord Mahakal (Shiva)," Chouhan told reporters on the second day of his Jan Ashirwad Yatra.

"Such shallow acts have turned that party into Congress (P), reducing it to two small states of Punjab and Puducherry and wiping it out from rest of India.

"Mahakal is not propitiated by letters. He will be propitiated by worship," Chouhan said.

As both parties are gearing up for assembly polls, Nath, the state Congress chief, addressed a 'letter' to the deity two days ago, urging it to bless people so that they can vote out the BJP and end its 15-year "misrule".

To the Congress's claim that Madhya Pradesh is reeling under a debt of Rs 1.90 lakh crore, Chouhan said the party is not aware that states qualify for loans only after meeting the Centre's criteria to assess the financial health.

"It is a globally accepted practice to take loans for development. We cannot wait till eternity to complete development projects," he added.

Describing the state Congress as a divided house, Chouhan said it needed to take out an 'Ekta Yatra' (Unity March) only because it is ridden with factions.

(With inputs from agencies)

