Manmohan a "failed PM": Modi

AMBALA: Continuing his diatribe against Manmohan Singh, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said he was a "total failure" as Prime Minister and a number of UPA leaders were not in favour of projecting him for the top job.

Several senior UPA leaders, including NCP supremo Sharad Pawar and Congress veteran Arjun Singh, were not in favour of Manmohan Singh occupying the post of the Prime Minister again, he told an election rally here.

"Only the Gandhi family -- Sonia, Rahul and Priyanka -- has been describing Singh as a successful PM " while the fact was that he had failed to deliver as Prime Minister, the BJP star campaigner said.

"He (Singh) is a failed Prime Minister," Modi told an election rally in support of BJP nominee Rattan Lal Kataria.

Reiterating that Manmohan Singh was country's weakest-ever Prime Minister, he said it was ironical that the Congress had been hailing him as a hero.

Despite being a Sikh, the Prime Minister had failed to protect the interest of his community in Pakistan where it was being subjected to torture and forced to pay tax (by the Taliban), the Gujarat Chief Minister said.

Referring to 26/11, he said the Manmohan Singh government had failed to effectively handle the Mumbai assault.

Talking about the UPA, he said at present there were half a dozen aspirants for the post of the Prime Minister in the formation.