People who don't shout patriotic slogans should be squarely defeated in elections, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi told on Thursday, attacking his political rivals as he continues his nationalism campaign.

"Some people have an issue with 'Bharat mata ki Jai' and 'Vande mataram', shouldn't such people lose their deposits? Some people have a problem when Modi talks about terrorism. Don't you feel nationalism and terrorism are important issues?" Modi said, while addressing thousands of people at Raj Maidan in Darbhanga, which is part of the Mithilanchal region in north Bihar.

Modi began his speech by greeting people in Maithli--the region's dialect--and shared the stage with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar, deputy chief minister Sushil Modi and LJP leader Ram Vilas Paswan. He landed at the Darbhanga airport, which will see its first flight for commuters beginning next month--connected by the central government's regional connectivity scheme.

Raj Maidan is a historic venue where the Maharajas of Darbhanga used to play polo.

As is evident in other parts of Bihar, Modi set the tone for fighting the elections in the Mithilanchanl region by brewing the issue of nationalism. His remark was seen as a direct attack on Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), which is in for a fight with the BJP in Darbhanga. A video viral here shows RJD candidate Abdul Bari Siddiqui speaking to a television channel, saying he doesn't have an issue in chanting 'Bharat Mata ki Jai' but reciting Vande Mataram was against his belief.

Darbhanga, one of the oldest cities of India and regarded as the unofficial capital of Bihar, votes on April 29. It was represented by Kirti Azad, who joined the Congress after the BJP expelled him and is fighting Lok Sabha elections from Dhanbad in Jharkhand. Azad has been a three-time MP from Darbhanga.

Former BJP MLA Gopal Ji Thakur is the NDA's candidate from Darbhanga. As described by a party worker, Thakur is a " low-profile grass root" worker of the party and was closely associated with the RSS. He was the MLA of Bahdurpur assembly constituency falling under Darbhanga.

"Darbhanga is the perfect seat for taking up the issue of nationalism and the opposition parties, which seem to be divided, are finding it hard to sideline this issue. Siddiqui's statement may cost dearly to them," said a BJP functionary present at the rally.

Siddiqui is contesting from Darbhanga for the first time. He had contested from Madhubani seat previously but had lost twice.

Campaigning for Siddiqui in Darbhanga, Rashtriya Lok Samta Party chief Upendra Kushwaha also made a controversial statement on Thursday. Terming the BJP as "dual faced", he compared it to artists "who play Sita in Ramayana on stage but are seen smoking ciggerates backstage."

Darbhanga seat has been alternatively secured by RJD and BJP since last two decades. But this time the two candidates belonging to BJP and RJD are fresh faces.

The Opposition was seen as a divided house when the difference between RJD and Congress spilled out in public over candidature last month. Congress was insisting to field Azad, Mohd. Ali Asharaf Fatmi, who has been a four-time MP from Darbhanga (two times each from the RJD and Janata Dal), was upset with Siddiqui's candidature. Fatmi was expecting to contest from the Madhubani seat but he was denied a ticket by RJD. Fatmi, who was removed from the RJD a few days back, had lost to Azad with a narrow margin of 35,000-odd votes in the 2014 election.

During his rally, Modi said that during the first three phases, the Opposition parties were, "on the top of their voices", asking for proof of the air strike done by the Air Force in the Balakot region of Pakistan. "But today all of them are abusing Modi and EVMs. They are aloof from the ground realities and are unable to catch the pulse of voters," Modi said.

Modi also talked about the "Darbhanga terror module" busted by the police in the past but said that he is an "alert" 'chowkidaar' who will put an end to "module and militants." He said the poor has been affected the most by terror attacks as the government has to divert funds towards the police machinery, instead of diverting funds to welfare schemes.