Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday accused the ruling Congress in Rajasthan of indulging in appeasement as its “first and last policy”, which had led to riots in the State’s peaceful towns and disturbed the celebration of major festivals. Mr. Modi said the Congress was worried about its vote bank instead of maintaining law and order.
Addressing a BJP rally in Jodhpur, Mr. Modi said no festival takes place in Rajasthan without incidents of stone-pelting. “The processions marking festivals such as Ram Navami, Hanuman Jayanti and Parasuram Jayanti were disrupted with stone-pelting. What was the Chief Minister doing when Jodhpur was engulfed in riots?” Mr. Modi asked.
The Prime Minister said a city like Jodhpur, which valued peace, was witness to gang wars, while a woman MLA of the region had declared that she was not safe and a businessman’s son had been kidnapped. “All of this shows a complete failure of the [State] government. In the last five years, the Congress has taken Rajasthan to the top in violence, corruption and crimes against women and Dalits.”
Mr. Modi referred to a controversial “red diary”, saying it contained “black deeds of corruption” of the Congress government, which would be exposed when the BJP is elected to power in the upcoming Assembly election. Sacked Minister Rajendra Gudha had claimed in the Assembly that the “diary” contained the details of the Chief Minister’s financial transactions.
Mr. Modi also took a dig at Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot for his absence in the official programme before the rally, where the Prime Minister launched multiple projects worth ₹5,000 crore. “Why was the Chief Minister missing? Probably because he believes that Modi will come and take care of everything. So let him take rest and we will handle things now,” he said.
This was Mr. Modi’s third visit to Rajasthan during the last 11 days, ahead of the Assembly election due in December. He announced that the beneficiaries of Ujjwala Yojana would henceforth get the LPG cylinders from the Centre for only ₹600. He said while India’s voice was now being heard on a global scale, the Congress had an issue with the country’s transformation as a leading economic power in the world.
“In its attempt to oppose the BJP, the Congress has started opposing India. They feel unhappy when India is recognised the world over,” Mr. Modi said. He also raised the issue of question paper leaks in Rajasthan and said it had ruined the future of lakhs of young people, who were demanding justice.
