Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday told voters in Uttarakhand that Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami had the “blessing” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and would lead the party’s government for five years.
In an address to ex-servicemen in the State, Mr. Shah said that “under the leadership of our young Chief Minister Dhami, in the next five years we promise a government that works with speed and transparency”. Later, he said the Dhami government had “the blessing” of Mr. Modi. The Home Minister’s statement comes as the Opposition Congress continued to attack the BJP for having three Chief Ministers in its five-year term, with Mr. Dhami taking charge in July 2021.
Mr. Shah spent the day campaigning in Uttarakhand for the February 14 Assembly polls, starting with a visit to Rudranath Temple, followed by door-to-door campaign in Rudraprayag and addresses to ex-servicemen, women and Scheduled Caste groups.
Lists policies for the forces
In his speech to ex-servicemen, Mr. Shah appealed to them to lead the way towards good governance in the State by choosing the BJP. Mr. Shah cited steps taken by the Modi government, including increasing the defence budget, implementing the One Rank, One Pension and the 2016 surgical strike over the Line of Control, as examples of the BJP’s policies for the forces.
Hitting out at former Congress Chief Minister of Uttarakhand Harish Rawat, Mr. Shah said the Rawat government had been one of “corruption and scams”, while there had been no allegation of corruption against the BJP government since it took office in 2017. Mr. Shah said the contest in Uttarakhand was between the BJP and the Congress.
He said if the government in Uttarakhand changed, projects like the Char Dham road, construction of toilets and distribution of gas cylinders would get stalled despite the Centre sending funds.
In a dig at Mr. Rawat’s seat being changed, Mr. Shah said he had “finally set his own seat”. “You have done enough, now it’s the turn of our young Chief Minister,” Mr. Shah said.
He said there was a need to improve education, health and employment to stop the migration of the youth from the State.
