Sitamarhi/Saran (Bihar)/ Barabanki (UP): On the eve of Lok Sabha phase-four voting on 72 seats in nine states, BJP chief Amit Shah on Sunday once again took to Pakistan-bashing and showcased the Narendra Modi government’s commitment to national security, saying “if Pakistan fires a bullet, we’ll surely bomb them”. He also said that India is only the third country after Israel and the US to counter terror bravely.
Attacking the Congress for allegedly showing a soft corner for the neighbouring country, Mr Shah said Prime Minister Modi has shown he is a man with a “56-inch chest” by destroying terrorist hideouts in Pakistan.
The BJP president’s nationalism pitch coincided with Union minister and Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan claiming that the NDA has gained momentum in every phase and is set to repeat its 2014 win.
“The Prime Minister has taken effective steps to secure the borders of the country. In the regime of UPA-I and II, enemy forces used to run havoc in the country but no action was taken on that front,” said Mr Shah, addressing back-to-back election rallies in Bihar’s Sitamarhi and Saran, which will be voting in the fifth phase of national polls on May 6.
“In the recent past, our 40 security personnel lost their lives in the Pulwama attack by Pakistan-aided terrorism.
Due to the decisive nature of PM Modi, our brave IAF (IAF) troops retaliated and entered enemy territory to destroy their terror camps. India is only the third country after Israel and the US to have retaliated to terrorism in this brave manner,” Mr Shah said.
Hitting out at the Congress, the BJP chief said, “Sam Pitroda issued a statement that such a retaliation is unwarranted but is it a fair question by the Opposition.”
“One thing is clear that if Pakistan fires a bullet, we’ll surely bomb them,” he said.
The BJP chief Shah said all anti-national elements will end up behind bars once the Modi government returns to power, as he hit out at Congress chief Rahul Gandhi for what he described as his “temerity” to promise scrapping of the sedition law.
He also targeted the Congress and the RJD, which have been alleging that Mr Modi’s claim of belonging to a backward caste was false. “The Prime Minister is not just a ‘pichhda’ but an ‘ati-pichhda’ and he has shown his empathy for the downtrodden by granting constitutional status to the OBC Commission, a move that was opposed by the UPA,” he said.
In Uttar Pradesh’s Barabanki, Mr Shah sought votes in the name of improved law and order situation in the state under Yogi Adityanath , claiming that while criminals roamed freely when the SP and the BSP ruled the stat.
“Till the time the SP and the BSP ruled the state, criminals would roam freely. But, after Yogi Adityanath assumed office, criminals are seen moving with a ‘patta’ (placard) reading ‘arrest us but don’t do encounter’.”
Mr Shah also claimed that a “pall of gloom had descended on Pakistan and the offices of the SP, the BSP and the Congress on the day of surgical strikes”.
In Patna, Union minister Ram Vilas Paswan asserted that the ruling NDA is on track to retain power at the Centre, helped by the “Modi factor” and the appeal of the issue of nationalism, while the Opposition has become a picture of “disunity” in a key state like Bihar.
“Our vote is increasing in every phase. The Modi factor was recently at work in the Prime Minister’s massive road shows in Varanasi and Jharkhand. More people are joining us. On the other hand, Opposition parties have not been able to unite either in Delhi or here in Bihar. People wonder what is the point of even voting for them as they don’t know what these parties will do,” he said.
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