Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday addressed his first rally in Amethi since 2014, the Lok Sabha constituency represented by Congress president Rahul Gandhi, and laid the foundation stone of a manufacturing unit for AK-203 rifles.

Mr. Modi, who landed in the city after addressing a rally in Bihar’s Patna, said Amethi, which has traditionally been loyal to the Gandhi family, was the best example of his government’s ‘Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas’ (together with all, development for all) motto. “Those who voted for us and those who did not all are ours,” Mr. Modi said.

After laying the foundation stone of the unit, he said these modern rifles will be manufactured in Amethi under a Russia-India joint venture. These rifles will be known as ‘made in Amethi’ and will help our jawans in encounters with naxals and terrorists, he said.

He accused the previous governments of neglecting the armed forces and their needs. He also said the UPA government sat on the Rafale deal for years.

This is Mr. Modi’s first visit to Amethi after coming to power in 2014. He visited the neighbouring Rae Bareli constituency, represented in Lok Sabha by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, in December.