BAGAHA/RAXAUL/SITAMARAHI: Raking up the Mumbai 26/11 blasts of 2008, Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath on Monday charged the Congress-led UPA, which was then in power, with having made the nation look "majboor" (helpless) by the reluctance to retaliate for fear of "atom bombs" possessed by Pakistan.
The firebrand BJP leader, who addressed four rallies in poll-bound Bihar, asserted that things changed since Narendra Modi took over and in the new "mazboot" (strong) India the security personnel were asked to "gouge out the eyes" of whoever cast an evil glance at India.
"The Congress-led UPA, of which the RJD was also a part, had made us look like a majboor Bharat. When hundreds of people from all walks of life were killed in the terrorist strike of 2008, the nation was yearning for revenge."
"The government of the day tried to scare the people by stating Pakistan, which had behind the terror attack, possessed atom bombs", said Yogi.
"But things have changed now. We are a new, mazboot India where the security personnel are not asked to wait till terrorists open fire. They have been told to gouge out the eyes of whoever casts an evil glance on the motherland and place these before the nation on a platter", remarked the UP CM, as crowds cheered lustily.
Referring to the Balakot airstrikes that followed the Pulwama terror attack, Yogi said "we hit Pakistan on its own soil (ghar mein ghuskar maara), demolished the training camps set up for militants thriving on its soil".
"And when one of our fighter planes was shot down and our officer Abhinandan captured, we made it clear to Pakistan that they must hand him over within 24 hours else consequences will be dire. They had do heed," he said.
"Even Pakistan has admitted that legs of its leaders were trembling and they were sweating out of nervousness while Abhinandan was in their custoy, since they knew it was a new under Modi", said Yogi referring to a recent remark by a parliamentarian from the opposition party in Pakistan whom the Imran Khan government is said to be planning to charge with treason.
The former Gorakhpur MP, who also heads a monastic order based in the eastern UP town and therefore dons saffron robes, also spoke about the commencement of construction of Ram temple in Ayodhya.
"Ayodhya may be in UP, but it holds even greater significance for the people of Bihar since the state happens to be the birth place of Mother Sita, whose name is often prefixed to that of Rama", said Yogi.
Yogi urged the people of Bihar to vote for the NDA led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar so that the state, with Modi at the Centre, continued to reap the fruits of development.
He asked voters to be wary of the "divisive Congress and RJD, who have often stood for forces detrimental to national integrity.
They share the blame for the Partition of the country".