Vowing to let no ‘Hand’ — the Congress symbol — near the union exchequer, Bharatiya Janata Party’s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi asked supporters in Ratlam on Wednesday to give a clear majority to “the only party whose goal is development and to change people’s lives.” Mr. Modi lauded the voters of Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh for voting his party to power for a third time.
“If Bantadhar (spoilsport, a slur on former CM Digvijaya Singh) had remained in MP, then what would have been the plight of your lives? The same spoilsport politics that made MP a BIMARU (backward) state has also destroyed India. MP finished off the spoilsport. Now it is your task to finish off the spoilsport in Delhi,” he said.
He added that during Rajiv Gandhi’s regime the Congress controlled all forms of government from “panchayats to parliament” and there was no sign of the BJP. “He (Gandhi) had then said that for every rupee sent from Delhi, only 15 paise reach villages. Which Hand scrubbed the rupee into 15 paise... I shall not let any Hand come near the treasury in Delhi,” he said.
Mr. Modi asked voters below 28 years of age to ensure his party getting a clear majority. “This is the most important age of your lives,” he said comparing the life period of 18 to 28 years to one’s intermediate exams. “If there is a useless government at the centre then your lives will be destroyed... The elders will ensure a BJP victory for sure, but you need to see to it that we get 300 seats to form a strong government.”
