SANT KABIRNAGAR/SIDDHARTHNAGAR/BALRAMPUR(UP): Hitting out at the Congress and other opposition parties, BJP chief Amit Shah on Thursday said the more their leaders hurl abuses at Prime Minister Narendra Modi the more the lotus will bloom. Shah also asserted that nobody except Modi can make the country feel secure and no one can take away Kashmir from India as long as the BJP exists.
Referring to the air strike on terror camps in Balakot in Pakistan, he claimed that Congress president Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders sulked after the operation and asked whether the terrorists killed were their "maternal-paternal brothers". "The security of the country is of top priority to us. If a bullet (goli) comes to us from Pakistan, our people will retaliate with a shell (golaa)," Shah said amidst applause from the crowd at his rallies. The BJP president was addressing rallies in Sant Kabirnagar, Siddharthnagar and Balrampur in Uttar Pradesh.
Shah claimed that the Congress, the Samajwadi Party(SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party(BSP) have not spared Modi from any abuse since he hails from a poor family. "The Congress, Mayawati and Akhilesh are hurling all types of abuses at Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Some times he is addressed as Hitler, sometimes as Mussolini and sometimes he is called as a murderer. This is because they (opposition) cannot tolerate the son of a poor becoming the prime minister," he said in Sant Kabirnagar, his third rally of the day after Balrampur and Siddharthnagar. Shah said, "To all these leaders, I want to say that the more you hurl abuses, the lotus will bloom with more splendour."
Referring to Pulwama attack, the BJP chief said, "After the Pulwama terror attack in which 40 jawans were martyred, Pakistan thought that India will conduct a surgical strike (through land route). But, the 56-inch broad chested Modi conducted air strikes which shook Pakistan. "There were celebrations in the country and people were exploding firecrackers. There can be no compromise with the security of the country. If Modi is made prime minister once again, nobody will be able to cast an evil eye. The infiltrators will be killed in their den. Nobody can make the country feel secure except Modi," he said.
Shah sought votes for BJP candidate Praveen Kumar Nishad, the joint opposition candidate who had defeated the BJP in the Gorakhpur bypoll last year but switched sides to the saffron party before the Lok Sabha elections.
Earlier in Siddharthnagar, Shah poked fun at the opposition alliance and asked them to tell as to who will be the prime minister if the so called 'gathbandhan' is voted to power. If BJP is voted to power, then Narendra Modi will become the prime minister. But, I want to ask Rahul Baba, bua-bhatija (an apparent reference to Akhilesh Yadav and Mayawati), that who will be the leader of your gathbandhan? If they are voted to power, then on Monday, Mayawati will be the prime minister. On Tuesday it will be Sharad Pawar, and on Wednesday somebody else would be the prime minister. These people are in politics to realise their vested interests, hide their corruption and for their families."
The BJP chief also said, "After the airstrike, the faces of Rahul Baba, Bua-Bhatija became sad (chehre latak gaye). They thought that their votebank had become angry. Why was disturbance in their camp when the IAF had killed terrorists in Pakistan. Were they (terrorists) their maternal-paternal brothers?" Wrapping up his day's visit to UP, Shah addressed a rally in Sultanpur where he said, "No one can take away Kashmir from us. As long as the BJP exists, Kashmir will continue to be an integral part of India."
The BJP chief also said that Article 370 will be withdrawn from Jammu and Kashmir, if the saffron party is voted to power again. In Balrampur, from where he started his UP tour, Shah accused the SP and the BSP of favouring certain castes and working for them while on the contrary, the BJP believes in the mantra of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas'.
"The SP and BSP are casteist and dynastic parties. When one was in power, it favoured a specific caste and worked for it. Similarly, when the second (party) was in power, it favoured another caste. The work of the society took a backseat," he said. But, on the contrary, he said, "The BJP believes in mantra of 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas', and it never asked the caste (of any person) while undertaking developmental works."
Shah said the best way to end casteism is that all people should unite. "If people from all sections of the society come together, people who spread casteism will not be able to succeed."
Showering praises on Modi, Shah said, "The Modi-Modi slogan, which can be heard across the country, is mot merely an election slogan. This is the blessings of the countrymen on Modiji. The slogan tells that, when counting of votes will take place on May 23, Modiji will be the next Prime Minister."
Taking a jibe at Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav, the BJP chief said, "For the past 70 years, the country was looking for a leader, who would live for the country and not only for himself. I know Modiji for the past 20 years, he has not taken an off for even a single day. Modi works for 18 out of 24 hours in a day. However, Akhilesh and Rahul go abroad to celebrate the vacations. Rahul Baba's mother does not even know where his son has gone abroad. The security of the country is of top priority to us. If a bullet (goli) comes to us from Pakistan, our people will retaliate with a shell (golaa)," he said amidst applause from the crowd.