Modi ridicules Opposition unity as lust for power

Maghar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday sought to put a dent in the credibility of Opposition parties coming together to form anti-BJP alliances by charging that they are not ideological partners, but are driven only by their “lust for power and greed for palatial bungalows”.

Specifically targeting the Congress, the Samajwadi Party and the BSP, Mr Modi said such is the “lust for power” that those who imposed Emergency and those who opposed it are now walking shoulder to shoulder. He also linked the SP and the BSP to “greed for palatial bungalows”, a veiled reference to the controversy over the bungalows allotted to former Uttar Pradesh chief ministers.

Speaking on the 500th death anniversary of mystic poet Kabir at Sant Kabir Nagar’s Maghar, where the poet breathed his last, Mr Modi launched what is being seen as the BJP’s campaign for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Uttar Pradesh sends the maximum number of MPs (80) to Parliament.

The Prime Minister’s Emergency barb was targeted at both the Congress, which imposed Emergency in 1975, and its ally Samajwadi Party, a Lohiaite party whose founding leaders had fought Emergency imposed by Indira Gandhi.      

“The lust for power is such that those imposing Emergency and those who had opposed it then are today walking shoulder to shoulder, and searching for an opportunity to snatch power,” Mr Modi said in a reference to the Congress and the SP.  

Without naming the SP and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), who collectively fought the recent bypolls in the state against the BJP, the Prime Minister said that parties that talk of “samajwad” and “bahujan” are extremely selfish and indulge in blatant casteism. “They are not bothered about the welfare of the country or society, but are concerned about their own welfare and their family’s interest,” he said.

Referring to the recent controversy over former Uttar Pradesh chief ministers being served notices to vacate their bungalows in compliance with a Supreme Court order, he said, “These people have developed an attachment to their luxurious bungalows.”

“Kabir did not believe in castes but said that everyone is equal. He asked us to involve ourselves in service of the poor but some people have only bungalows on their minds. We aim to take Kabir’s wisdom to the masses and include it in shaping a new India,” Mr Modi said.

He criticised the approach of the previous SP government in Uttar Pradesh when his BJP government at the Centre launched the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana. “These parties did not allow the poor people to get the benefit of the Prime Minister’s housing scheme,” he said.

The Prime Minister had a word of appreciation for the Yogi government when he said that Uttar Pradesh had now become the top state under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

In an oblique reference to communal flareups fuelled for political gains, Mr Modi said, “Some parties do not want peace and development. They think if there will be unrest, they will benefit politically. Such people are cut off from roots and do not understand the nature of the nation that belongs to Sant Kabir, Mahatma Gandhi and Baba Ambedkar.”

Recalling Ambedkar’s contribution, he said though he advocated equality in society, there are parties that are using his ideals for political gains.

Mr Modi, while drawing inspiration from the 15th century poet, interspersed his speech with his couplets. He recited the couplet, Kabira khada bazaar mein, maange sabki khair/Na kahu se dosti, na kahu se bair, and said the essence of these lines happens to be the basic idea of his Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas policy.

Mr Modi attacked the Congress and alleged that parties that indulge in vote bank politics were creating obstacles in the passage of the triple talaq bill which aims at the welfare of Muslim women.

“They want a weak society for their own vested interests, and do not want to see a society free from evils,” he said.

Earlier, the Prime Minister paid floral tributes at Sant Kabir’s samadhi and offered chadar at the adjacent mazaar of the poet. He also laid the foundation stone for a '24 crore Kabir Academy and research center at Maghar where the poet breathed his last.

Mr Modi began his speech by greeting people in Bhojpuri and ended it with the salutation saheb bandagi.