Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge today sought blessings from people who attended his public meeting at the Gumani Ground in Jharkhand's Pakur.

Addressing the people, Kharge said that it was the Congress government that had developed the infrastructure of the country and fought for its freedom.

After launching Congress’s 60-day "Haath Se Haath Jodo" mass outreach programme at the same Gumani Ground in Pakur, party workers are planned to make door-to-door visits to mobilise citizens of the Centre's policies, which according to Congress are "anti-people."

Further Kharge said that there was no freedom of speech in the country after the Bharatiya Janata Party came to power at the Centre. Addressing a rally in Jharkhand's Sahibganj district, Kharge expressed his disappointment over parts of his speech being expunged in the Parliament earlier this week.

"There is neither freedom of speech inside Parliament nor outside...Those who dare to speak up are put behind bars," claimed Mallikarjun Kharge in the rally.

He further said that ever since the BJP came to power in 2014 with the promise of reducing inflation, the price of essential commodities and poverty have only risen.