Union Home Minister Amit Shah on April 3 in Muzaffarnagar targeted the Congress and the Samajwadi Party (SP) over the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. Mr. Shah said that the Narendra Modi-led Union government had honoured public sentiment with the construction of the temple.
“They did nothing for the temple during their regime. It was the Narendra Modi government that honoured people’s sentiments and built the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. This 2024 election is to give Narendra Modi-ji opportunity to be the Prime Minister for a third consecutive term,” Mr. Shah said, addressing his first election rally for 2024 in Uttar Pradesh.
Present with him at the National Inter College in Shahpur, Muzaffarnagar, in support of the party’s candidate, Sanjeev Balyan, was Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) president Jayant Chaudhary.
Mr. Shah elaborated on the welfare measures initiated by the Union government led by Mr. Modi. “The Modi government has kept the poor and farmers at the centre of its policies in the last 10 years. Be it timely payment to sugarcane farmers or the construction of modern highways, availability of electricity, and strong law and order, the BJP government has set records in every field. The people of Uttar Pradesh are determined to take forward this development journey by giving all the 80 seats in the State to the BJP,” he said.
Pushing the nationalism pitch, the Home Minister raised the abrogation of Article 370, highlighting that Kashmir had become an integral part of India with uniform laws. “Kashmir belongs to us. When Narendra Modi-ji became Prime Minister for the second time, he removed Article 370 and made Kashmir an integral part of India. Terrorism ended in Kashmir. The nation is now fully secure and prosperous,” Mr. Shah said.
The BJP leader touched upon the alleged migration in Kairana in early 2010. “Before the BJP government assumed power in U.P., Kairana used to witness large-scale migration. But after 2017, anti-social elements started migrating from U.P. We have done a lot of development for every section of the society, keeping poor at the forefront of welfare initiatives,” he said.
Mr. Choudhary, in his speech, urged voters to support the candidates of the BJP-RLD alliance. “Our country is reaching new heights of development under Modi-ji and the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) rule. Make sure all our candidates emerge victorious for a strong nation and rapid, continuous welfare,” the RLD president said.
Later, Mr. Shah interacted with the BJP’s office-bearers in 16 parliamentary seats in Moradabad in western U.P. to discuss preparations for the Lok Sabha election. He asked the approximately 250 BJP leaders and workers to prepare with complete dedication to fulfil the resolution of winning “400 seats”’ by taking the achievements and vision of the BJP government to every house and locality of Uttar Pradesh.
