BENGALURU: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said the recent NDA victories in West Bengal, Assam and Puducherry Assembly elections show that the people of the country are marching with the BJP’s vision of national interest.
He tore into Congress, accusing it of betraying its allies. Referring to the Grand Old Party dumping its long-time ally DMK in Tamil Nadu to join hands with actor-turned-politician Joseph Vijay’s TVK, he said, “In Tamil Nadu, Congress maintained a close relationship with DMK for the last 25 to 30 years. That alliance helped pull Congress out of various crises. Even the government they ran for 10 years prior to 2014 survived solely because of DMK. But what happened?
With the very DMK with whom they shared a bond of ‘living and dying together’... the very party that worked tirelessly for the betterment of Congress... the moment the political game for power shifted elsewhere... power-hungry Congress backstabbed DMK,” he said.
The "parasitic Congress" now needs yet another party (TVK) to ride on to remain politically relevant, he said, addressing BJP workers who felicitated him at HAL Airport in Bengaluru on Sunday morning.
Modi accused Congress of misleading the nation over the delay in government formation in Tamil Nadu. “You have an absolute majority in Kerala. Why haven’t you formed a government there yet? This very ecosystem remains silent regarding Kerala.
Their leaders are unable to reach a consensus -- should they adopt a two-and-a-half years each formula or get five CMs to serve one year each,” he said. He said Congress makes promises to their own party leaders only to stab them in the back later. “They did exactly this in Chhattisgarh; they did the same in Rajasthan, that same game is currently playing out in Karnataka; and now, it is Kerala’s turn,” he said.
He said the Congress government in Himachal Pradesh is unable to pay salaries to its employees. In Congress-ruled Telangana, farmers are being driven to suicide. “In essence, wherever Congress is in power -- whether it is under the guise of a ‘royal court’ or otherwise -- either the public exchequer is being looted, or they are squabbling amongst themselves over stolen wealth,” he said.
The moment Congress leaders spot an opportunity, they do not hesitate to betray even their own allies, he alleged. He said people of India want speed and solutions, and not scams, and they want politics rooted in national interest. “Today, the entire nation is marching shoulder-to-shoulder with BJP’s vision of national interest.”
He said the entire nation is abuzz with discussions regarding the recent election results. They have scripted a new history and are significant for the political trajectory and direction of India. They reflect the mood of every section of Indian society -- the youth, women, farmers, poor, and middle class. A profound message embedded in these results is that, in a world beset by instability, the people of India are offering the mantra of stability,” he added.
BJP at the helm at the Centre for 12 years, and BJP-led NDA governments in power in over 21 states across the country work with the guiding principle that the development of the country stems from the development of its states, he observed. “Look at Congress... a party that just 40 years ago secured over 400 seats has failed to even touch the 100-seat mark, even when aggregating their totals across the last three general elections,” Modi chided.
Accusing Congress and allies of being arrogant and blaming “the entire world” for their own defeat, he said they harbour hatred even towards the Constitution, democracy, constitutional processes and courts.
“In my public life, I have never witnessed any party behaving in such a manner. They have sunk so deep into the abyss of despair that, apart from hurling abuses and using foul language, they have absolutely no agenda left,” he added.
He gave a call to the people to stand together to steer India through global challenges. “A crisis situation persists in West Asia. This atmosphere of conflict has had a negative impact on the world, and India, too, is being affected by it,” he said.