india

Updated: May 15, 2019 16:09 IST

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday finished his campaign in Bihar as he exuded confidence about a second term at the Centre and promised to bring in a stream of development in the eastern region.

The Prime Minister’s last rally ahead of the final and seventh phase of polling in the Lok Sabha election on May 19 was in Paliganj, 60km from state capital Patna. Eight parliamentary constituencies of Patna Sahib, Pataliputra, Arrah, Buxar, Nalanda, Sasaram, Karakat and Jahanabad will poll this Sunday.

These seats are crucial for the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) as it had won all of them in the last general election in 2014.

“I have come to thank the people for their overwhelming support in the previous six phases of the election, which made the poll outcome known by the end of the fourth and fifth phases, and seek blessings for the last phase. I bow my head before you all with respect for the way you have supported me,” Modi said.

“Some people are still busy doing caste arithmetic in Delhi but the people have given their verdict. The NDA team in Bihar is more capable than me and they often said I need not bother about Bihar, but being a ‘karyakarta’ I have to slog as other BJP workers do even in the hot weather,” he said.

Attacking the Opposition for “stitching an alliance of negativism”, he said the people of India had poured water over their dreams to have a ‘majboor’ (helpless) government at the Centre. Modi accused his predecessors of being lenient in dealing with terrorism as he listed his government’s successes.

“During earlier terror attacks, the previous governments gave lip service. We said we could not bear with it anymore. This chowkidar of yours gave a free hand to security forces and attacked the terror camps entering their land. They do not deserve to be dealt with leniently. They needed a stern response and we gave that,” he said.

Terming the Opposition alliance ‘mahavilavati’, the Prime Minister said they had only two objectives – to tarnish the image of Modi and to somehow remove him.

“They don’t know that Modi is here by the blessings of 130 crore people of India. I have remained CM and PM for almost two decades and I have always seen God in people. But some greedy people eye these posts to carry out loot in the interest of self and family. The Congress ‘namdaar’ and the ‘bhrast parivar’ (corrupt family) have amassed hundreds and thousands of crores. Where did they get it from?” he asked.

Modi said if they had any concern for the poor and the needy, their hands would have trembled before resorting to corrupt means.

“But they treat poor only as vote bank. They have only lip service to offer, as surrounded by sycophants they have become arrogant. The walls around them are so big that they cannot see the pain and problems of the poor,” he said.

“They got an opportunity to serve Bihar but they could only offer betrayal and bad name to the state. They are still on the lookout of another opportunity to plunder Bihar wealth, but the people have become smart and can read their design,” he added in a veiled attack on the previous RJD-led government in the state.

Modi said that the party that did politics in the name of caste to amass huge wealth fooled its own caste men.

“Imagine, it could not find one person in own caste out of the family to run the party. Let alone the society and the nation, they cheated their own caste men. All they did was to mislead the youth of their own caste on to the wrong path. Now, Bihar is changing and so is the nation. When it comes to the nation, it is India first for everyone. Other things come later,” he said.

Listing out the pro-poor work of his government — the constitutional status to OBC commission, PM Kisan Yojana, Ayushman Bharat, plan to double farmers’ income — Modi said those who identified themselves with the cattle-rearing class never found the time to think about their welfare.

“Now, we are offering them credit card like the Kisan credit card. We also have plans for fishermen, who, too, have remained neglected for far too long. We will have a separate department,” he added, catering to all the important segments.

The Prime Minister made special mention of Yaduvanshis, as he had done in 2015, keeping in mind the strong Yadav population in the two constituencies of Patna Sahib and Pataliputra in the state capital and the neighbouring Jehanabad.

“I have come from Gujarat, the land of Yaduvanshi ‘Sudarshan Chakradhari’ Krishna. Our inspiration is the butter-loving Bal Gopal and flute playing Kanhaiya. Whenever required, India will draw inspiration from the ‘Sudarshan Chakradhari’ to teach terrorists a lesson,” he said.

He also reminded the people of the anti-Sikh riots and the recent remark of Congress leader Sam Pitroda, making people chant ‘hua to hua’ several times.