IANS
Rangia (Assam), April 8
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday urged the people of Assam to vote decisively for the BJP, warning that a hung assembly will hurt the state.
Addressing an election rally here in Kamrup district, the prime minister said the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies wanted to form “a majority government” in the state.
“Some people are waiting to see a hung assembly in Assam. They want to remote control Assam from Delhi,” he said, in an obvious reference to the state’s ruling Congress party.
“So make sure that the BJP alliance gets an absolute majority.”
Modi also accused the Congress of exploiting what he called was the Bangladeshi vote bank to stick to power.
“The people of Assam have supported the Congress wholeheartedly for 15 years. But the party has failed to reach beyond its Bangladeshi vote bank and dynastic politics, ruining the state,” he thundered.
The prime minister said that fencing the winding India-Bangladesh border was his priority.
He said his government would take such steps that would not only stop infiltration from Bangladesh but ensure that all the illegal infiltrators living in Assam were sent back.
And in an obvious dig at the Congress, Modi wondered why Saudi Arabia’s decision to confer the highest civilian award on him had upset some people in the state.
“I understand a certain country won’t like India’s relationship with some foreign country improving. But why a section of people here are having stomach ache? What kind of patriotism is this?”
Earlier, at another rally at Raha in Nagaon district, Modi said Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi had stopped smiling after the heavy polling in the first phase of assembly elections on April 4.
And the Congress leadership cannot save the party from defeat in the polls, the second and final phase of which will be conducted on Monday, he said.
Modi arrived in Assam on Friday to campaign for the BJP. Polling for 61 constituencies will take place on Monday.
The prime minister first visited the Kamakhya temple in AssamÂ’s main city Guwahati.
“I thank the people of Assam for the unprecedented high percentage of voting in the first phase,” Modi said, addressing the crowd at Raha in Hindi.
“You must have noticed that the Assam chief minister has stopped smiling after the first phase. He is now inviting Congress leaders from Delhi to save him.
“But how can they (Congress leaders) save Gogoiji when they could not even save Delhi?” he asked, referring to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
He said he had come to Assam to seek the people’s support to bring about a change of government in the state.
Modi said he had not seen another state in India apart from Assam where he claimed the entire population lived below poverty line (BPL).
“There are states in India where there are 20 or 30 percent BPL population. But the Congress in Assam has turned the entire population of the state poor as BPL.”
He said there should be a new government in the state.
A total of 65 constituencies in Assam saw a record 82.20 percent polling in the first phase on April 4.
Congress Vice-president Rahul Gandhi today attacked Prime Minister NarendraModi, accusing him of making ‘big promises’ on bringing back black money and asked him to explain why he has not instituted a probe into the matter of the Chattisgarh chief minister’s son’s name featuring in the ‘Panama Papers’.
“The Panama Papers have been leaked and many names have been mentioned about black money kept in Panama. It has also mentioned that Chattisgarh chief minister’s son Abhishek Singh has account in Panama,” Gandhi said while addressing a Congress poll rally here for the second phase of Assam Assembly election on April 11.
“Modi makes big promises to you about bringing back black money kept abroad. He should have at least said why no investigation has been ordered into the featuring of the chief minister’s son name in them,” Gandhi said.
He said he had asked Modi in Parliament why former IPL chief LalitModi, who had escaped from the country, had not been brought back. “Modiji did not utter one word in response.”
“Before (Vijay) Mallya fled the country he met Finance Minister ArunJaitley in Parliament House. LalitModi, who stole thousands of rupees, is also being kept outside the country,” he alleged.
Claiming that the Modi government was not taking action against black money hoarders, Gandhi said, “Recently Jaitley brought a new ‘Fair and Lovely scheme’ whereby any gangster, goon, drug dealer can make their black money white by just taking it to the government and paying minimal tax on it.”
Modi, he said, only made false promises during LokSabha elections about bringing back black money. “None of the Indians have received the Rs 15 lakh of that money in their bank accounts as assured by Modi.”
The Panama Papers are leaked confidential documents on detailed information about off shore companies listed by a Panamanian corporate service provider showing how wealthy individuals, including public officials, conceal their money from public scrutiny.
