NEW DELHI: Ahead of the assembly elections in the 20 seats of Chhattisgarh’s first phase, including the Naxal-affected Bastar district, Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked Congress party’s rule in the region claiming that they enabled the left wing extremist movement to gather traction.
He added, “Whenever Congress comes to power, the courage of terrorists and Naxalites increases in the country. The Congress government has failed to control Naxal violence. In recent times, many BJP workers have been taken away from us. A few days ago, one of our workers was shot dead.”
Modi also added during the public meeting at Bishrampur that it was the Congress who had cheated the people and the youth of the state through the Mahadev App scam. “Congress did not even fulfil the dreams of the youth of Chhattisgarh. They even did a scam in the name of ‘Mahadev’. ‘Mahadev’ betting scam is being discussed in the country and abroad today. Congress has made your children place bets to fill its coffers. Will you ever forgive them?” he said.
FLASH: This is a festival of democracy. I appeal to all the voters to cast their votes: PM Modi in Chhattisgarh’s Surajpur.#ChhattisgarhAssemblyElections2023 #ChhattisgarhElection2023 pic.twitter.com/Q7pwhPMBKZ
— The New Indian (@TheNewIndian_in) November 7, 2023
The PM also attacked the state government for being unable to protect Adivasi girls from being trafficked. “Our sisters and daughters are being targeted by criminals. Many girls from tribal families have gone missing. Congress leaders have no answer to this,” he said.
While the first phase of Chhattisgarh’s polling was underway, the PM highlighted the importance of President Droupadi Murmu, who herself is an Adivasi woman belonging to the Santhal tribe. He said, “Congress never bothered about you or your children whereas BJP has always prioritised the development of Adivasis. Did you ever imagine that a woman coming out of an ‘Adivasi’ family could become the President of our country? The Bharatiya Janata Party has increased the Central Government’s budget for the tribal community by 5 times, so that your children get a good education, 500 new Eklavya Model Schools are also being built in tribal areas.”
Modi also accused the Grand Old Party of wanting to stop the President’s rise and it was the BJP which wanted to ensure honour to the Adivasi women in the country. “You can never imagine how hard Congress tried to stop her, but it was the BJP which ensured honour to the Adivasi woman in the country. When Congress was in power, they used to think that spending money on Adivasis was a waste.”
While the first phase was underway, Chhattisgarh recorded a voter turnout of 70.87 per cent on Tuesday, amid an IED blast in the Sukma district.