New Delhi, Sept 8: Sonia Gandhi today accused Narendra Modi of resorting to "hawabaazi" (empty boasts), drawing an angry retort from Smriti Irani.

Sonia was speaking at the CWC meeting that extended her tenure as president and amended the party constitution to reduce the term of all office-bearers, including party president, from the present five years to three years and ensure 50 per cent reservation in organisational posts for women, Dalits, tribals and OBCs.

"The U-turn on the land ordinance is evidence that the government is out of touch with ground realities. It has become painfully clear that most of the pledges made by the Prime Minister during his election campaign were nothing more than hawa baazi," Sonia said.

"Thanks to our party's sustained campaign, the government has been compelled to withdraw its anti-farmer amendments. The credit for this goes to every worker of the Congress party, who under Rahul's active guidance, carried out a sustained agitation," she added.

Irani, the human resource development minister, hit back hours later.

"Sonia Gandhi addressed a meeting of a party organisation that is in disarray and headed by an unsuccessful leadership. She tried to cloak her own failures with the help of Narenddrabhai. Her charges are ridiculous," Irani said. She claimed that every time Sonia attacks Modiji, "the country unites behind Modiji".