Cong manifesto full of lies: Modi in Arunachal

Guwahati: In his first reaction to Congress manifesto, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday described it as a ‘deceit document’ that was ‘corrupt’ and ‘full of lies.’
Addressing an election rally at Pasighat in Arunachal West Lok Sabha constituency, Modi tore into Congress for promising scrap the sedition law in its manifesto. “For the 2004 Lok Sabha election, Congress, in its manifesto, had promised that every house would have electricity by 2009. Till 2014, around 18,000 villages in the country were still to be electrified. Just like them, their manifesto is corrupt and full of dhakosla (deceit). Therefore, it (manifesto for this election) should be called a ‘dhakosla patra’ (deceit document) and not a ‘ghoshna patra’ (manifesto),” he said.

The PM, who was holding his second election rally in Arunachal within a week, added, “When the NDA came back to power in 2014, we fulfilled the promise of Congress by illuminating 18,000 villages within 1,000 days.” He further said, “This election will be between ‘waadon’ (promises) and ‘iradon’ (determination). At one end here is iradon wali sarkar (a government with determination) and on the other end ‘sirf aur sirf jhoothe waadon wale naamdar hain.”

Criticizing Congress’s promise to do away with sedition law, he stated, “To encourage separatists, violence and those who abuse the country, Congres has formulated a plan. Those who burn the tricolour and insult it, raise slogans of breaking India into pieces, play in the hands of foreign forces and vandalise statues of Baba Saheb (Ambedkar), Congress sympathises with them too. They do not say Jai Hind like you but they say Bharat tere tukde honge slogan. The sedition law that we have against people who defy the Indian Constitution and defy the perimeters of Indian laws, even this Congress has promised to end.”

The PM added, “You tell me whether there should not be any law against traitors of the country, shouldn’t they be punished? If these traitors are let loose, it is the people who will have to face immense problems. The country will be under threat. I don’t know what has happened to these people (Congress). Is the hand of Congress with the country or with traitors?,” asked Modi.

The PM said BJP, unlike Congress, never made false promises and kept its commitment of providing free LPG connection to nearly 60 crore women in the country, constructed toilets in every village and extended healthcare facilities under the Ayushman Bharat Yojana to about three lakh people in Arunachal Pradesh. “I can say that I am a man who can withstand any challenge the country faces and plan and execute all work with dedication and commitment,” he added.

Modi also charged Congress with fooling farmers in the name of votes. “It is the BJP government which has always been with them. We have introduced the mechanism from seed to market but have never betrayed the farmers,” he said.

The PM further added that the state is on growth path now with many mega projects like the advance landing groundd (ALGs) at Pasighat and Tezu and Naharlagun-Guwahati-New Delhi train connectivity.

The frontier state is having both Lok Sabha and assembly elections simultaneously. In the House of 60 in the state, BJP has already opened its account with three of its candidates winning unopposed. Elections to the remaining 57 assembly seats and two parliamentary constituencies will be held on April 11.

Even as Modi was addressing the rally at Pasighat, Congress president Rahul Gandhi was campaigning for former Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi’s son, Garuav, at Bokakhat on the other bank of the Brahmaputra on Wednesday.