Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Feb 4: While his virtual rally in Uttarakhand was cancelled on Friday due to bad weather conditions, the prime minister Narendra Modi addressed a virtual rally for western Uttar Pradesh claiming that the opposition parties had campaigned against the Covid vaccines but the people rejected them and co-operated with his government in taking jabs to fight against Coronavirus.
He said he was thankful to the people who “ignored the rumours spread by the Opposition against Covid vaccines and got the jabs.”
His rally for Uttarakhand would be rescheduled soon, the state BJP vice-president Devendra Bhasin said. On Friday, arrangements were made at 56 places to accommodate 1,000 people each but bad weather meant that going ahead with event would have caused them inconvenience, he said.
Realising that the farmers from Western UP had heavily supported the recent farmers’ agitation against three contentious farm laws which the centre was later forced to repeal, Modi told his western UP audience that the union budget for the next financial year was heavy with promises for the farmers. “With this year’s Budget, there’s going to be a change in the lives of Uttar Pradesh’s poor, middle class and farmers. Ever since the Budget has been announced, the whole country is praising it. It gives weight to the aspirations of this country’s poor, middle class and youth.”
He added that the ‘double-engine’ government is concerned about the farmers’ present and future, which is why “this year, the budget of agriculture has become six times as compared to the previous governments.” He also highlighted the focus on organic farming along the banks of River Ganga and the use of drones to help farmers in the Budget.
Attacking the opposition parties on the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for various agricultural commodities, which continued to be one of the pending major demands of the agitating farmers, Modi said, “The Opposition left no stone unturned to spread the rumour that MSP will end. But the double engine government in UP has increased procurement at MSP many times more than before 2017.”
While Modi addressed a virtual rally in UP, the Congress leader Rahul Gandhi addressed a virtual rally in Goa, and the defence minister Rajnath Singh and the Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal addressed audiences in Punjab.
Earlier in the day, CM Yogi Adityanath filed his nomination from Gorakhpur for the upcoming Assembly elections. He was accompanied by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
Reacting to the arrest of Punjab Chief Minister Charanji Singh Channi’s nephew, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi said central agencies were being misused. “The government is using them to threaten people and put pressure on Opposition leaders. This should not be allowed during elections,” she said.
The former Congress Punjab CM Amarinder Singh, however, shot back against Gandhi claiming that it was the job of the investigating agencies and wrong to blame any political party for legal actions. Singh has floated his own party after being ousted from office and is contesting the elections as an ally of the BJP.
Channi, meanwhile, has said, “We have no objections with the law doing its work.” On Friday, the ED arrested Bhupinder Singh ‘Honey’ in a money laundering case linked to alleged illegal sand mining.
Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi addressing a virtual rally in Goa said, “We’re taking a historic decision in Goa, a new ‘Nyay Scheme’ will be launched. Rs 6,000 per month, i.e. Rs 72,000 in a year, will automatically be transferred to Goa’s poorest citizens”.
“You saw how BJP govt failed in tourism, COVID19, & employment. We’re not giving ticket to defectors, have given ticket to new people this time. Congress will form a govt in Goa with a full majority. The fight is between Congress & BJP only, do not waste your vote,” he added apparently hitting at AAP and the Trinamool Congress besides smaller regional parties which are also in the fray in the seaside state.
The AAP convener and Delhi chief minister Kejriwal in turn hit out at the Congress saying that had it worked for people, there was no need for a person like him to come into politics. His statement comes a day after Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala described Kejriwal as “Chhota Modi” and said he has come to Goa to give “covering fire” to the ruling BJP, which is “losing” ground in the coastal state that is going to polls on February 14.
Referring to Surjewala’s statement, Kejriwal told reporters, “Let him say whatever he wants. What difference does it make?” “Actually, even in his (Surjewala’s) dream, he finds me like a ghost. All the time, 24 hours, I am there in his mind. They (Congress leaders) keep badmouthing me,” he said. The Delhi chief minister said instead of speaking ill about him, the Congress should have worked for the people.
Rajnath Singh seeking votes for the BJP in Gurdaspur said support the BJP to form a government in Punjab and “we will see who dares to sell drugs and attempt sacrilege.”
