A press release of GIBV said, “The political direction of BJP under the leadership of Narendra Modi is complementing the concept of Rashtra Dharma propagated by GIBV. (Express photo by Renuka Puri)Somabhai Modi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s elder brother, on Friday said that his organisation, GIBV, would work to ensure that a clear majority to a national party in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in order to avoid a situation leading to horse-trading.
GIBV (Global Indians for Bharatiya Vikas) is a non-governmental organisation comprising non-resident Indians based in the United States. The organisation was founded in 2014 and campaigned during the last Lok Sabha elections. Somabhai is vice-president of GIBV.
Addressing a press conference here, Somabhai said, “We all know that BJP got clear majority in 2014 elections. Yet they faced difficulties in fulfiling many works on their agenda. The parliament does not work properly. Those whom we have sent to the Parliament do not let the Parliament function. That is the biggest hurdle in the progress of our democracy and we cannot let that continue.”
Former BJP minister Maya Kodnani and former VHP leader Jaydeep Patel, both accused in the 2002 Naroda Gam massacre case, were also present at the press conference.
Somabhai said that his organisation would work to persuade people to vote for a national party instead of regional parties. Regional parties, he said, are detached from national issues. “For the past sometime, the standing of national parties is decreasing due to regional parties. Regional parties try to take the society forward by remaining involved in their local issues. They get detached from national issues, causing damage to us,” he said.
To avoid disruptions in the Parliament, he said, “We will work with the expectation that in 2019 elections, a national party gets a majority.”
A press release of GIBV said, “The political direction of BJP under the leadership of Narendra Modi is complementing the concept of Rashtra Dharma propagated by GIBV.
