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PM Modi targets Congress, calls Sukhu govt ‘talabaaz sarkar’
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday called the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led Congress government in Himachal Pradesh a “talabaaz sarkar” for shutting down the staff selection commission and several offices set up by the BJP government that preceded it.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday called the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led Congress government in Himachal Pradesh a “talabaaz sarkar” for shutting down the staff selection commission and several offices set up by the BJP government that preceded it.
The PM addressed election rallies at Nahan for party candidate from the Shimla Lok Sabha seat Suresh Kashyap and in Mandi for Kangana Ranaut, the BJP nominee from the Mandi parliamentary constituency.
Addressing the “Vijay Sankalp” rally at Nahan’s Chaugan Ground while campaigning for Kashyap, the PM said: “The Congress government in Himachal promised one-lakh jobs at its first cabinet meeting, but this ‘talabaaz sarkar (one that believes in locking everything)’ can’t offer jobs. Naukraiyan nahin de sakti (this government can’t open job avenues).”
In February last year, the Sukhu government disbanded the Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission (HPSSC) following a paper leak in December 2022. In October 2023, the state government notified the Himachal Pradesh Rajya Chayan Aayog (HPRCA) in place of the HPSSC.
Strikes chord with Nahan
Modi accused the Congress government of reversing developmental works and prioritising political vendetta over public welfare. He highlighted that these closures had negatively impacted the state’s growth.
Striking a chord by donning the traditional Himachali cap and recalling his old association with the hill state, Modi said: “Neither Nahan nor Sirmaur is new to me. I’ve come here to seek your blessings for a third term to the BJP government. A vote for the BJP would be a vote for a developed nation and developed Himachal.”
Slams Cong on OROP
Modi targeted the Congress for not accepting the demand for “One Rank One Pension” (OROP) scheme. He said the Congress did not accept the demand for OROP for 40 years but after he declared at a rally of ex-servicemen in Jhajjar in the run-up to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls that the BJP would implement it, the Congress insulted the veterans by earmarking just ₹500 crore for the scheme.
“The Congress opposed the Ram temple and teased us with slogans like ‘Mandir wahin banaenge, tareekh nahin bataenge’. We not only declared the date but also performed the pran pratishtha (of the Ram temple) and the Congress boycotted it to appease its vote bank,” he said.
Modi claimed a conspiracy is being hatched to snatch the reservation from the Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) and give it to Muslims.
The Congress has already done it in Karnataka, he said, adding that the Calcutta high court had quashed OBC certificates conferred on 77 classes of Muslims to please the vote bank, but West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee is not honouring the court order. The PM said his government has provided 10% quota for the upper caste poor but did not snatch it from any other caste.
Himachal ‘sankalp bhumi’ of Ram temple: PM
Addressing a rally in Mandi in favour of party candidate Kangana Ranaut, the PM called Himachal the ‘sankalp bhumi’ (land of resolve) for the construction of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, referring to the BJP national executive passing a resolution to build the temple during its Palampur meeting in June 1989.
“Almost 500 years of wait for the Ram temple is finally over now. This wait is over because of your vote,” he said.
‘Central funds for HP flood victims distributed selectively’
Modi accused the Congress government in Himachal of selectively distributing central aid meant for victims of last year’s floods and promised to investigate where the money went. “The Centre had given crores of rupees during the monsoon disaster but the state government did ‘bandar bant’ (indiscriminate allocation) of relief funds. I will recover the money from those who got it wrongly and give it to the people who deserve it,” the PM said.
The Congress is in reverse gear and wants a poverty-stricken and crisis-ridden nation, surrounded by “problems”, Modi said.
Calling upon the people to reject the Congress for a third time in this Lok Sabha polls, the Modi said the Congress also talks about bringing back Article 370 and scrapping the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
‘Kangana represents aspirations of youth’
Rallying support for Kangana, the PM said: “She is not only our candidate but also represents the aspirations of our youth and daughters of our nation. She represents the belief that our daughters can achieve new heights in varied fields.”
“You have seen how they (Congress leaders) have made derogatory remarks about our daughters. Congress leaders even took the name of Mandi and made derogatory remarks against Kangana, which is disrespect to Choti Kashi, and the whole of Himachal,” he said.
