BJP stars light up final day of campaigning with roadshows in all Lok Sabha constituencies

The party roped in beneficiaries of central government schemes, such as Ujjwala Yojana, PM Uday Yojana and Mudra Yojana, for a press conference to share their experiences. The list also included ex-refugees who got citizenship rights through the CAA

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which currently represents all seven Lok Sabha seats in Delhi, ended its campaign on Thursday with roadshows in each constituency, lining up a slew of star campaigners that included women and child development minister Smriti Irani, defence minister Rajnath Singh, actresses Rupali Ganguli and Bhagyashree, Rajya Sabha member Piyush Goyal, Uttarakhand chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami, Rajasthan chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and Maharashtra deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis.

Union minister Smriti Irani campaigns for East Delhi candidate Harsh Malhotra. (Raj K Raj/HT Photo)

The party roped in beneficiaries of central government schemes, such as Ujjwala Yojana, PM Uday Yojana and Mudra Yojana, for a press conference to share their experiences. The list also included ex-refugees who got citizenship rights through the CAA (Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019).

Rajnath Singh, Piyush Goyal and Bhagyashree were in West Delhi early on Thursday to support their candidate Kamaljeet Sahrawat through a six-hour roadshow, from the Najafgarh water tank to Subhash Nagar. The party entourage included a two-kilometre-long procession of vehicles, including cars, scooters, tractors, and e-rickshaws.

Singh said that with the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, “Ram Lalla” has entered his palace and India will now definitely witness “Ramrajya”. Singh also took a dig at Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal. “He promised not to live in the CM’s residence but ended up building a palace for himself. What happened with their party’s female MP Swati Maliwal is also shocking,” Singh said.

Smriti Irani, a former Chandni Chowk MP, took part in a roadshow to support current Chandni Chowk candidate Praveen Khandelwal, in a roadshow from Ram Leela Ground in Ashok Vihar to Deep Market on Lakshmi Bai College Road, passing through Wazirpur underpass and Trinagar Shankar Chowk.

“I have full faith that the people of Delhi will cast a historic vote for the third time, believing in the guarantee of our PM Narendra Modi... People of the country have understood that the path of development can be ensured only by the BJP, under the leadership of Modi ji. Hence, for the third time also, Modi ji will win with full majority and we are forming the government together,” Irani said.

She also addressed a roadshow in support of East Delhi candidate Harsh Malhotra.

Yogendra Chandolia’s roadshow in North West Delhi drew large crowds, as people flocked to catch a glimpse of actress Rupali Ganguly — a popular lead in TV serials, famous for portraying the role of Draupadi in Mahabharata — in the procession from Outer Ring Road to Sector 6, Rohini, which passed through rural areas of Avantika, Mangolpuri, Sultanpuri, Kirari, Mubarakpur, and Madanpur, besides Kanjhawala, Ghevra Mod, Mundka and Nangloi.

In the New Delhi constituency, Pushkar Singh Dhami supported Bansuri Swaraj through a roadshow from Indira Camp in Malviya Nagar to Paharganj. Swaraj said that she had been among the public for the past 83 days and was confident of her victory. In North East Delhi, Devendra Fadnavis supported Manoj Tiwari, who undertook a foot march to interact with voters.

The press conference, where beneficiaries shared their experiences, was led by Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva. “The benefits of schemes implemented by the Modi government in the past 10 years have had a significant impact on our lives, as demonstrated today by the people of Delhi,” Sachdeva said.

Narendra Rathore, an autorickshaw driver, said that there are 100,000 drivers living in and around Delhi who are now earning due to technological advances brought in by PM Modi. Another autorickshaw driver said that he bought his vehicle on a loan under the Mudra scheme.

Baljeet Singh, an MSME businessman, thanked the BJP government for enforcing the 45-day rule for payments, saying this improved his financial situation.

Rahul Seth, who runs a start-up, said: “Before GST, many misconceptions were spread, but now, we find it convenient to do business. GST is beneficial for new start-ups.”

Sanitation worker Geeta Devi thanked the Modi government for regularising her job, due to which her salary shot up from ₹7,000 to ₹30,000.