In pics: Narendra Modi's Meerut rally

Meerut(UP): Narendra Modi today hit back at Sonia Gandhi over her ‘zeher ki kheti' barb saying it is the Congress which spews poison and reaps the harvest out of it with its divisive politics.“Sonia Gandhi has told Rahul that power is poison. Who has been in power for most of the time during the last 60 years?.. In whose stomach has this poison gone? Who is spewing this poison? Who is harvesting the poison? They (Congress) are the ones who sow the seeds of poison,” the BJP prime ministerial candidate said at a rally here. He said the country is seeking answers from Congress to its issues but its replies are wayward.”People are asking Sonia Gandhi why farmers are committing suicide, her reply is people are sowing seeds of poison.”Modi's counter-attack came a day after Sonia Gandhi at a rally in Karnataka accused Modi and BJP of indulging in divisive politics by “sowing seeds of poison” (zeher ki kheti) and instigating violence in their “hunger” for power. In his 50-minute speech, Modi attacked the Congress, ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh and the AAP government in Dehi and sought a mandate in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections by projecting himself as ‘chowkidar' who will guard public funds.The BJP's Prime Ministerial candidate said that he had made Gujarat free of riots and would make UP also riot-free if his government is voted to power.Accusing Congress of driving a wedge between states and communities, Modi referred to the Telangana issue and said that the entire Andhra Pradesh is engulfed in the fire started by the manner in which the Congress had handled the issue.“It is because they are following a police of divide and rule. You keep sowing seeds of poison and destroying the country.”He compared it with the creation of states of Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand by the Atal Bihari Vajpayee led NDA government and said that at that time celebrations had taken place.In a scathing attack on the Samajwadi Party government in Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi Sunday blamed it for the deteriorating law and order situation in the state."Has anybody thought about the law and order situation of the state (UP)?" Modi asked at a rally here, adding that the SP should be called the "Samajvirodhi Party" instead of Samajwadi Party.Asserting that the law and order situation in the state has deteriorated over the last decade, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate asked people whether they felt their women were safe under the current regime."Women are scared of venturing out of their homes..., I urge you to at least ensure the safety and security of women in the state," Modi said, addressing SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.Challenging the SP regime on the development plank, he said: "If you want to compete with Modi, improve the law and order situation, give electricity to the villages and improve the lot of farmers, and then compete.""Compete on the issues of development," he said, adding that the SP will not do that as they don't want to address these issues.