His tongue has been trimmed: Parrikar on Kejriwal surgery

September 18, 2016 03:03 pm | Updated 03:03 pm IST - PANAJI:

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar gets himself checked at a health camp in Panaji to the mark birthday of PM Narendra Modi on Saturday.

Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar gets himself checked at a health camp in Panaji to the mark birthday of PM Narendra Modi on Saturday.

Taking a broadside at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Union Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Saturday said the former’s tongue may have been over-stretched because of his continued criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“His tongue must have over-stretched itself because of the number of times has criticised Mr. Modi. Now he has got it trimmed,” Mr. Parrikar said, without naming Mr. Kejriwal, in his speech delivered in Konkani at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers’ meet here. Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, State ministers and party leaders were present.

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo recently underwent tongue surgery at a Bengaluru clinic. Doctors treating Mr. Kejriwal had said that the positioning of his tongue was behind his constant cough.

Mr. Parrikar sympathised with Mr. Kejriwal, but said the AAP government in New Delhi had no right to leave people hit by chikungunya and dengue in the lurch, with the Chief Minister on medical leave and Deputy CM Manish Sisodia in Finland as part of a world tour.

“If your mohalla clinics are so good, how can 40 people die of chikungunya and dengue? You cannot fool all the people all the time. Your lies are being exposed,” Mr. Parrikar said attacking the AAP, which has already declared four candidates for the upcoming Goa Assembly elections.

Earlier, stating that the countdown has begun for the elections with exactly six months to go for the dissolution of present House on March 17, Mr. Parrikar vowed to work tirelessly to bring the BJP back in power in Goa with full majority on its own. He said the party believed in ‘alliance dharma ’ and, as such, will go fight the elections to the 40-member Assembly in alliance with the MGP, but it must be prepared to contest all 40 seats.

Earlier, Mr. Parsekar broke his silence and made a veiled attack on recently-axed Goa RSS chief Subhash Velingkar, Bharatiya Bhasha Suraksha Samiti and their proposed political party that intends to defeat the BJP in coming election over medium of instruction (MoI) at primary level, issue.

He claimed that BJP abides by policy of giving primacy to regional languages as MoI at primary level and, therefore, it has given various concessions to such schools, allowed nearly 94 new such primary schools and not given permission to a single new primary school with English as MoI. He also urged the party workers to be vocal in their criticism of those who are attacking party and government over MoI.

Mr. Parrikar earlier claimed that the BJP government in Goa had gone as per its manifesto assurance of 2012 as regards MoI issue where it had promised an amicable solution to the vexed issue.

He claimed that they had amicably resolved the MoI issue and if it was not understood properly then it was the fault of those who were misinterpreting it and not that of the government.

He said that the government cannot ditch some schools all of a sudden by stopping their grants, making an indirect reference to continuation of grants to Arch Diocese primary schools with English as MoI inviting ire of Mr. Velingkar led-BBSM.(eom).

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