New Delhi: BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party) on November 8 countered the Congress attack on the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government saying that Sonia Gandhi should take stock of the performance of her party Chief Ministers instead of indulging in "empty rhetoric".

"Gandhi should not indulge in empty rhetoric against the NDA government but use the meeting of Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled states to take stock of their performance," party spokesman Arun Jatiley told reporters in New Delhi.

At the fourth conclave of Congress Chief Ministers in Mount Abu earlier in the day, Gandhi attacked the BJP-led NDA government for being a "comprehensive failure" and that the country was once again looking up to Congress to revive economic growth, foster social peace and enhance India's stature in the world.

Refuting Gandhi's charges, Jaitley said, "Rajasthan has had a series of starvation deaths, in Madhya Pradesh development is at a standstill and today there are reports of 22 deaths due to starvation.

"Karnataka Chief Minister has cut a sorry figure both before the Supreme Court and his own people. Kerala government has no money to pay salaries while Maharashtra government has barely survived and is busy fighting its own internal contradictions," he said.

Elaborating further on the shortcomings of Congress-ruled states, he said, "Jammu and Kashmir government (Congress-PDP coalition) has started with contradiction. We would have appreciated if she had been pulling up her Chief Ministers rather than indulging in empty rhetoric against the NDA government."

PTI