Rahul Gandhi on Friday targeted the Left Democratic Front government in Kerala by asserting that Congress stalwart and former Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy had to battle one of the most unjust political attacks, an apparent reference to the alleged multi-crore solar scam.

The Rae Bareli MP was speaking at a memorial meeting to mark the second death anniversary of Chandy after visiting his tomb at St George Orthodox Church at Puthuppally in Kottayam.

“Chandy endured criminal assaults and lies; non-stop lies were spread against him. I’ve never heard of him getting angry at anyone. I used to regularly speak to Chandy when he was facing these allegations, but the Congress stalwart never spoke angrily about anybody. He was never affected by it. He killed himself for the people of the state despite facing one of the most brutal and unfair political attacks,” Rahul said.

In 2013, three of Chandy’s office staff members were accused of being involved in the alleged duping of several persons of crores of rupees by a woman and her male accomplice by offering solar panel solutions.

The woman had also accused Chandy and some other senior Congress leaders of sexually exploiting her. However, all of them were given a clean chit in 2016 by the CBI, which probed her allegations.

Rahul said in his 21-year political career, he had never come across a politician who truly understood the feelings of people like Chandy.

He said that he learned a lot from Chandy, who always wanted to nurture a new generation of leaders who could work with compassion, humility and the politics of feeling.

“He was not just an individual, but an expression of Kerala politics. I have literally seen him kill himself for the people of the state,” the leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha said.

Rahul said politics should have more leaders like Chandy.

"He had been a guide to me ever since I entered politics in 2004. Chandy took part in my Bharat Jodo Yatra despite failing health and barred doctors from accompanying him. He was a leader who lived for the people, and it’s this quality that helped him to walk along with me in the Yatra,” Rahul added.

Highlighting Chandy’s initiative, the Sruthi Tharangam project, Rahul said it was launched “not for electoral gain, but to ensure that every single child in Kerala should be able to hear.” The project saw Chandy providing cochlear implants to 630 hearing-impaired children during his tenure as the chief minister.

Rahul on Friday handed out cochlear implants to some children with hearing difficulties.

The Congress leader also handed over the keys to 12 newly built houses for the poor, constructed by the Oommen Chandy Foundation, and launched a charitable initiative called Smriti Sangamam.

In the evening, Rahul met veteran party leader A.K. Antony at his home here.