US presidential elections gained winning momentum only after he referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi , Dhumal said. (Image Credit: Prem Kumar Dhumal/Twitter)

In one of the most interesting comments of this election, Prem Kumar Dhumal, the former chief minister of Himachal Pradesh, on Friday suggested that the Donald Trump’s campaign in the US presidential elections gained winning momentum only after he referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Dhumal, who was campaigning for MLA Hans Raj in Chamba’s Churah Constituency, said, “Now, I will talk about the most powerful nation in the world, the US, and its President Trump. Everyone thought Hillary Clinton would win, but Trump won in the elections. Who knew about him? No one thought he would win, but during the last days of his campaign, he said he would work like India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said that like Modi is working to take India forward, he would work for the US. And he won.”

He then drew an analogy based on his own observation. “If this is the impact of Modi in the US, then in Himachal we are already No.1,” Dhumal said. Dhumal further said that BJP has always carried out development without any distinction of caste or religion.

He told the gathering that Union Minister Nitin Gadkari has announced a National Highway project for Churah. Dhumal also claimed that vacant posts of doctors in the local hospital will also be filled once the BJP government comes to power.

Churah is the same area where the rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl had lead to communal tensions in July. The girl had gone missing when she was returning from her school and two days later the police found the minor’s body in a forest here. Police had initially held as a case of murder by the police, however, the post-mortem report confirmed rape, sparking outrage and protest in the area.

Speaking to The Indian Express at the rally venue, the former CM lashed out at the Congress for “trying to create communal tension using secularism propaganda”. He said that BJP is trying to bring each community together and work for their development, while the Congress has always misused the concept of secularism and tried to create communal tension. Surely, elections have been announced and we are all set to hear some startling claims and promises as usual.