Prime Minister Narendra Modi is “not against corruption, he is an instrument of corruption”, Congress President Rahul Gandhi said on Wednesday, The Indian Express reported. He was speaking to reporters during a roadshow in poll-bound Meghalaya.

“The Bharatiya Janata Party comes to Meghalaya and offers crores of rupees to the churches of the state,” ANI reported him as saying. “Just like they think they can buy some Congress MLA’s and form the government here, they also think they can come here and buy the church, the religion, and God. This is disgusting.”

The February 27 elections in Meghalaya are crucial for the Congress, which is in power in the state. It holds power in three other states.

Earlier in the day, Gandhi criticised Modi for his silence on the Rs 11,380-crore Punjab National Bank scam and the government’s Rafale defence deal.

In a post on Twitter, Gandhi replied to Modi’s request for ideas for his monthly Mann Ki Baat radio show saying, “Why ask for ideas when in your heart you know what every Indian wants to hear you speak about? Nirav Modi’s 22,000 Crore Loot and Scoot and 58,000 Crore RAFALE scam (sic).”

Gandhi called the Mann Ki Baat programme “a monologue”, and added: “I look forward to your sermon.”

This is not the first time Gandhi has picked on Modi over the bank scam. Last week, he asked why Modi was “not saying anything” about it and alleged that a multi-crore scam such as this could not have taken place “without high-level protection”.