Prime Minister Narendra Modi today launched, as expected, an all-out attack on the opposition – starting with Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party, his direct rival in Wednesday’s Delhi Assembly election – as he responded to a discussion in Parliament on President Droupadi Murmu’s address last week.
He began with a dig at “some political leaders (who) focus on Jacuzzis and stylish showers”, a comment seen as referring to the AAP boss and allegations he spent Rs 45 crore of taxpayer money on luxury fittings and furnishings for the bungalow – dubbed ‘sheeshmahal‘ – he had as Chief Minister.
“Some leaders are focusing on jacuzzies and stylish showers… but our focus is on getting water connections in every home (and) our government gave tap water to 12 crore families,” he declared.
He also slammed the AAP, which many see as the BJP’s only opponent in this Delhi election, for having reneged on earlier pre-poll promises, pointing to his party’s track record in Haryana as an example.
He hailed the party’s landslide wins in the Maharashtra and Haryana elections last year.
“The country has seen how we function. We promised jobs and, as soon as our Haryana government was formed, we gave jobs as promised. In Maharashtra too we registered a historic win…” he said, lobbing another swipe at the AAP, “We focus on youth but some betray them. This group, during elections, promises many things but doesn’t fulfil them. This group is an ‘AAP-da’ on youth’s future…”
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The reference was to the AAP’s practice of offering an array of freebies, including free water and electricity, a practice criticised by the BJP. However, in the run-up to this Delhi election, the BJP and the Congress have come out with similar offers in their manifesto, prompting sarcastic quips from the AAP.
Congress In PM’s Crosshairs
The PM then deftly pivoted to deliver a jab at the Congress too, for whom Rahul Gandhi delivered a fierce attack of his own yesterday, targeting the government on the India-China border row and the stuttering manufacturing sector, mocking it for having failed to deliver its ‘garibi hatao‘ promise.
“In the last 10 years of (BJP rule), 25 crore people were able to overcome poverty. But, before this, for decades we heard ‘garibi hatao‘ slogans, but couldn’t do it…” he said, “We didn’t give slogans to the poor… we gave real development. Till now, we have given four crore houses to the poor.”
“We have done so much for the poor… the President spoke about it at length in her speech. But those who do ‘photo ops’ in huts… they will find discussion on poor people boring,” he said, taking a AAP + Congress dig over senior leaders from both parties campaigning in Delhi’s poorer areas.
Gathering steam, the Prime Minister also fired a barb at one of his predecessors – the late Congress PM Rajiv Gandhi, who was sometimes referred to as ‘Mr Clean’ – declaring he had admitted that for every Re 1 of aid meant for the poor, they received only 25 paise, or less. Mr Modi claimed that in his administration, the poor were direct beneficiaries, thundering, “We deposited Rs 40 lakh crore directly.”
In a wide-ranging speech targeting all of the ruling BJP’s major rivals, punctuated by vociferous protests from the opposition and enthusiastic desk-thumping by his MPs, Mr Modi also reminded the House, and millions of Delhi’s voters, of the big-ticket announcement in the Union Budget last week.
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“In 2014 there was no tax till only Rs 2 lakh salary… today that number is Rs 12 lakh. The salaried class will not have to pay tax on 12.75 lakh after April 1, if we count the standard deduction,” he said.
PM’s JFK Reference
Opposition MPs received an addition to any reading list they may have after Mr Modi recommended they read ‘JFK’s Forgotten Crises’, US foreign policy expert Bruce Reidel’s book on political and diplomatic emergencies during John F Kennedy’s presidency.
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The suggestion came as Mr Modi aimed a dig – invoking ex-PM Jawaharlal Nehru, a frequent target of BJP attacks – at critics of his government’s handling the China border row, and followed questions by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi yesterday and Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav earlier today.
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