BENGALURU/BADAMI/HAVERI: "It is clear Bengaluru wants the BJP. This city believes that our party will continue delivering on good governance and development," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on Saturday, soon after his first day of a roadshow, apparently overwhelmed by the response he received in the run-up to the May 10 assembly polls.
During the 26-kilometer-long Modi roadshow, which covered 13 assembly segments, the chant of 'Bajrangbali ki Jai' and 'Jai Bajarangi' were heard loudly.
Many BJP supporters, including women and children, attended the event dressed up either like Lord Hanuman or wearing face masks depicting the deity. This was in response to the recent Congress manifesto proposal to ban Bajrang Dal in Karnataka if voted to power.
What I saw in Bengaluru, I say with confidence that this election is neither Modi contesting nor BJP leaders or our candidates contesting; it is the election the people of Karnataka are fighting on behalf of the BJP. I see the total control of the election in the hands of people," Modi said, addressing a rally in Badami.
At a rally in Haveri, he said development works done by the central and state governments under the BJP are there for all to see and enjoy the benefits. "This needs to be continued, and it is possible when a stable government is in place. The BJP alone has the capacity to provide a pro-people, stable government and implement schemes to make Karnataka the No. 1 state in the country," he said. Cautioning people of Karnataka against Congress' guarantees', Modi called the promise of 'Garibi Hatao' announced by the party 50 years ago as its "biggest fraud in the history", which is still on.
He criticized the Congress party for corruption and accused them of resorting to personal attacks against him, as the BJP's government has put an end to their corruption. He said that BJP has achieved this by bringing Jan Dhan Aadhar Mobile (JAM) and ensuring money is directly credited to people's accounts. "We used a 'trishul' of Aadhar, mobile, and Pan cards to ensure that all the funds released by the Centre reached the beneficiary directly,'' he added.
Taking a jab at CLP leader Siddaramaiah, Modi sought to know why the former CM who had contested the 2018 election from Badami deserted the constituency, and moved to Varuna. "The people of Badami should ask him this question. He left because he did not do any development work," he added.
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