Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is to attend two public meetings in Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur and Bulandshahr Assembly constituencies on Monday. In a day-long event, the senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader will be addressing people during the campaign.
Singh will start his first public address from Katra under Shahjahanpur constituency followed by Sikandaraabaad in Bulandshahr. I shall be addressing public meetings in Katra (Shahjahanpur) and Sikandaraabaad
(Bulandshahr) assembly constituencies today. Looking forward to it,” Singh tweeted.
As the first of seven phases of elections in Uttar Pradesh is slated on February 10, the Defence Minister is continuously addressing public gatherings in different constituencies in Uttar Pradesh as well as other in poll-bound states of Punjab and Uttarakhand for nearly last one month.
While addressing three public gatherings in Uttar Pradesh’s Hamirpur, Rath and Mahoba in his day-long visit to the state on Sunday, the Minister compared between previous governments of other parties and present BJP government in Centre and Uttar Pradesh, saying “no one can say that any BJP minister has been accused of corruption”.
The Minister said as long as there is corruption, the kind of development we want will not happen. Singh also made a veiled reference to corruption allegations faced by Congress-led subsequent UPA governments at the Centre and Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party government in UP before BJP came to power at both Centre and state.
Singh on Sunday ensured people that their trust in BJP is the party’s wealth and that the party will never break this trust, and keep providing employment as well as ration and medicine for the poor in Uttar Pradesh.
“Your trust is BJP’s wealth. We never broke your trust and we will never break it,” Singh asserted. Mentioning that “there is a competition between the party which focuses on the development and those who are against development”.
“If you choose development, there will be good governance, the homes of the poor will be illuminated. There will be employment for youth and their income will increase. There will be free ration and medicine for the poor,” Singh ensured.
The Minister also ensured “har ghar nal and jal” (tap water in every home). Singh said what the BJP promised it completed and its work will continue like this. The Minister said that an individual can be wrong in the party but the party will not be wrong ever.
He praised Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for his action against criminals and creating fear in hurts of “mafias” (known criminals). He also hit out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his recent statement in Parliament, blaming the BJP-led government’s foreign policy to bring China and Pakistan together.
Referring to a violent clash between Indian and Chinese soldiers in Ladakh’s Galwan valley, the Defence Minister had said the Indian soldiers displayed exemplary courage and valour in the line of duty and even sacrificed their lives.
Taking a jibe at Gandhi over the number of casualties on the Chinese side, he had said, “It means you (Rahulji) will accept whatever Chinese mouthpiece Global Times says.”
Singh referred to a report published in the Australian newspaper “The Klaxon”, which stated the possibility of 38-50 Chinese casualties. Singh also said that, unlike other parties, the BJP fulfilled all its promises what it made to the public.
The Minister informed how the BJP government abrogated Article 370 from Jammu and Kashmir and brought Citizenship Amendment Act for the reliably persecuted Indians residing in Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan. A day ago, Singh also attacked Samajwadi Party accusing it of doing “politics of appeasement”, and asserted that “only BJP can do development” in Uttar Pradesh.
Assembly Elections will be held over a total of seven phases for the five states. Uttar Pradesh will go to the polls in seven phases, Manipur in two, the rest in a single phase.
Goa, Uttarakhand, and Punjab will go for polls on February 14 in one phase, and Manipur from February 27. The 403-member Uttar Pradesh Assembly is scheduled to go to the polls in seven phases on February 10, February 14, February 20, February 23, February 27, March 3 and March 7. The counting of votes will be taken up on March 10.
