We changed scale of development: Shah
BENGALURU: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Amit Shah said on Thursday that the central government under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi changed the scale of development work after coming to power in 2014.
Addressing a convention of traders and industry leaders in the state capital, Shah said while previous governments had spoken only of building a few 1,000 toilets and erecting a few electricity poles. “We changed the scale of work, because we said there shouldn’t be a household without a toilet, a person without a bank account or a village without electricity.”
Shah said the country was in a terrible state in 2014. “A series of corruption charges kept coming out thanks to the Central Bureau of Investigation, the Comptroller and Auditor General and other agencies. And the total figure for corruption was ₹12 lakh crore.”
Shah said in the past four years 290 million people had got bank accounts, 75 million toilets had been built and 90 million families had got gas cylinders thanks to the government.
The BJP president said no government would be able to provide employment to all the youth in the country. “But Modi found a new avenue of self employment, and without any guarantee or guarantor we decided to give youth loans ranging between ₹10,000 and ₹10 lakh and so far 90 million have benefited.”
“When I spoke about this in Parliament, P Chidamabaram made fun of me, asking me if making pakodas was employment, beggars should also be classified as being employed. I feel any person who labours to make pakodas makes the same contribution as a person like Chidambaram,” Shah said.
Referring to the attack in Uri, Shah said, “Within 10 days, Modi asked the army to go to Pakistan Occupied Kashmir and conduct a surgical strike. But Congress mocks this, asking if attacks have reduced. Reducing attacks is not in our hands, but responding to them is within our powers.”
Repeated attempts to reach Congress spokespersons through phone calls and messages went unanswered.
Politicians are human too, and the fact that voting in Karnataka takes place on May 12, a Saturday – considered inauspicious – and results are being declared on May 15 which is a ‘Amavasya’ (new moon day, again considered inauspicious) has most in a flap. So, not surprisingly, astrologers are in great demand to find an auspicious time for them to file nomination papers or start campaigning.
Some candidates, their supporters and parties are also conducting havans and special pujas for ensuring the defeat of opponents and guaranteeing their own victory. But there are a rational few too. Satish Jharkiholi who is the sitting Congress MLA from Yamakanmaradi has declared his intention to file nomination papers during the inauspicious ‘Rahu Kalam.’ Others have openly challenged well known astrologers to accurately predict the outcome of the election and win prize money. None has taken up the chal - lenge.