NEW DELHI: The “Garibi Hatao” slogan of late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi may have slipped out of the popular lexicon of the Congress, but it has strongly become the war cry of the BJP. The Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday articulated the pro-poor mantra of the NDA government, saying that the people now have an unshakeable faith in the credentials of the NDA government to uplift the economic conditions of the poor in the country.
“People had hope from the BJP in 2014, which turned into belief in 2015. Now, it’s well established in the minds of 125 crore population that only the NDA government could execute the slogan of Garibi Hatao on the ground,” the Prime Minister told the Parliamentary party meeting of the BJP.
With the Modi government completing three years in power on May 26, ministers and MPs have been directed to cover all districts in the country in a month long campaign beginning May 25 till June 25. “Ministers and MPs have to carry the Garib Kalyan agenda of the NDA government to all the districts. Besides 83 Central schemes, they have to inform the people about Modi government’s abiding commitment to substantially uplift the status of the poor in the country. The NDA government’s all decisions and initiatives, including demonetization and the imminent rollout of the GST, are aimed to make meaningful changes in the lives of the poor for the better,” sources said.
The month long campaign of the ministers and MPs will be part of the NDA blitzkrieg to showcase the achievements of the government and further cement the electoral base of the behemoth alliance, which now consists of 33 constituents, across the country. The propaganda machinery of the NDA is being well oiled, as ministers have been given specific tasks to carry out across the country, which include countering the “Opposition narrative of lack of employment growth, inconsistent reforms, curbs on freedom of speech and expression”.
With Uttar Pradesh well in the saffron kitty now, the NDA has strategized to further expand in new territories with the “pro-poor plank of the government yielding electoral dividends in plenty”, sources added. Incidentally, the BJP had adopted the “Garib Kalyan” agenda at the National Council meeting of the party in Kozikode in September last year to commemorate the birth anniversary of the party ideologue Deen Dayal Upadhyay. Armed with the “Garibi Hatao” slogan, the BJP is gearing up for foothold in another BIMARU state – Odisha – with the National Executive meeting slated for the coming weekend.