Pratapgarh: Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi alleged hooliganism and casteism reared their ugly heads and development took a back seat during the successive non-Congress regimes in the state in the past 22 years.

Only the Congress could ensure development in the state and for this people's mindset needed to be changed, he told a public meeting here.

Asking people to get the maximum work done from him for development of the state, the Gandhi scion said he was ready to toil hard for this purpose.

"I am ready to work. You can get the maximum work done from me for development of the state. I will never backtrack.

I am ready to toil hard. But, you should also realise your power."

Rahul said during the rule of successive non-Congress parties in the state, hooliganism and casteism reared their heads.

Lashing out at the BSP and the SP, he said corruption and scams were rampant during their rule in the state.

Neither SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav nor BSP supremo Mayawati had visited any village in the past five years but now these leaders were making tall promises to the people, Rahul said.

"When their parties were in power, only corruption and scams were witnessed.

"But, now during the election time, their leaders are making all sorts of promises to voters which is misleading," the Congress leader said.

Terming SP's promise of providing free electricity to farmers as a mockery, Rahul Gamdhi said "when there are no power generation units, how can this be possible."

"Without power units, how free electricity to farmers is possible. The SP's promise is just a mockery," he said.

PTI