Solan (HP): Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday slammed the Congress as a “guarantee of corruption and nepotism” and targeted the AAP as “most corrupt” in the guise of ‘kattar imaandaar’ as he sought people’s votes for stability and development under a BJP government in the state.
Addressing a rally here, Modi spoke at length about his long association with the hill state and exhorted people to support “lotus” (BJP’s election symbol), saying their votes to it will be their “blessings” to him and that they should keep in mind not the candidates but “kamal ka phool”.
He excoriated Arvind Kejriwal-led Aam Aadmi Party, equating the party with “small groups” who win some seats or come to government by making false promises to serve their selfish interests.
During the Congress rule, many selfish and vested interest groups emerged who wanted to see instability in the country and states like Himachal Pradesh, he claimed.
“For this reason they stop a stable government from coming to power. Small states have always been targeted by these selfish groups. They make false promises, win a few seats and work for their own interests. They call themselves ‘kattar imaandaar (very honest)’ but they are the most corrupt and conspire to divide society,” Modi said.
Unlike the Congress, the AAP was not named by him in the address but his suggestion was clear as the regional party, which has grabbed attention from a section of people with its populist promises in Gujarat and Himachal, has often called itself “kattar imaandaar”.
With the ruling BJP in the state facing some headwinds over issues like old pension scheme and presence of rebels in several seats besides factors like price rise, the prime minister sought people’s votes on the larger theme of his push for nationwide development, the Centre’s welfare schemes and the stability brought in by his party.
While also listing several development initiatives taken by the BJP governments at the Centre and the state for Himachal Pradesh, Modi said people should bless with their votes.
They don’t need to keep in mind who is the candidate, he said.
“You only remember lotus. I have come to you with lotus. When you go to vote and see lotus, you should know that the BJP and Modi have come to you. Your every vote to lotus, will be your blessings to Modi,” he said, as the crowd responded enthusiastically.
Small states, he said, suffered a lot due to instability, adding that now they have turned to voting for incumbent governments due to their work. He cited the example of recent Uttarakhand and Goa assembly poll results which saw the BJP retaining power.
The BJP’s work and resolve are strong while in the Congress there is uncertainty, indecisiveness and anarchy, Modi said.
Himachal Pradesh needs a BJP government as that will provide stability to it, he asserted.
Attacking the grand old party, he alleged that the Congress means a “guarantee” of corruption, selfish politics and nepotism.
Elections to the 68-member Himachal Pradesh assembly will be held on November 12 and counting of votes will take place on December 8.
“For three decades there was instability in Delhi, governments came and went, thousands of crores of rupees were wasted in elections that happened repeatedly. People then decided that only a stable government can change the fortunes of the country and in 2014, people voted for a stable government and we also left no stone unturned to fulfill people’s aspirations,” Modi said.
A stable government at the Centre has controlled militancy and Naxalism and has acted decisively against corruption, he said.
Stable governments are the need of 21cenrury India, he said.
Solan with such big response has given a message that Himachal Pradesh will again have ‘double engine’ government of the BJP, Modi said.
He said the BJP government in the state benefitted lakhs of senior citizens by decreasing the age bar to 60 years from 80 for old age pension scheme.
The Centre has spent over Rs 2,000 crore in the state to benefit over 9 lakh farmers under its money transfer scheme.
