Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Friday addressed four public meetings in central Gujarat at Limbdi in Dahod district,Bharuch in Narmada district,Petlad in Anand district and Nadiad in Kheda district. The BJP did not perform well in central Gujarat in the last Lok Sabha elections in 2004 and the Assembly elections in 2007. Addressing the crowd in Petlad,Modi took on Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi. Starting the campaign trail from Limbdi in the tribal heartland of the state,Modi promised the tribals better facilities and skill-based training in future,while also saying that Congress president Sonia Gandhi is unaware about tribal issues. There is a plan to send 35 children for special pilot training,which will usher in progress in the districts, he said while citing the achievements of Van Bandhu Kalyan Yojana for tribals. Modi also questioned the UPA governments decision to import sugar at a higher price when it was selling the same at lower prices. There must be a scam in the recent import of sugar by the UPA government, he said. Taking a dig at the Congress national leaders,he said,I dont know why they are trying to take on me. They are national leaders and I am the CM of a state. Why do they need to make comments on me? Its like an Olympic player playing against a taluka level player. In his rhetorical style,he took on former Union Home Minister Shivraj Patil by saying: When blasts had rocked Delhi,Shivraj Patil was playing with his grandson. I have no problem with that. But dont play with the lives of people in India. Dont take people for a ride. Apart from his usual comments on Afzal Guru,vote bank politics and minority appeasement,Modi said that the government in Delhi (Centre) should be a friend of Gujarat. The government should be a partner in the development of Gujarat and not create hurdles, he said,adding that,Advani is the MP from Gujarat and he is the right person who can provide a government that thinks about the state. So vote for him. During his public meeting at the Bharuch Hostel ground on Friday,Modi said that there is no difference between Assam and Gujarat. In Assam people are afraid of Bangladeshis,in Gujarat,which neighbours Pakistan,people are afraid of Modi, he said. Modi once again took a dig at the Prime Minister calling him majboor (helpless) rather than being mazboot (strong). He also accused the Congress of engaging in vote bank politics. According to the Sachar Committee report,which was formed by the Congress,the situation of Muslims in Gujarat is economically better than in other states, he said. Modi also said that there are a dozen candidates in the UPA who want to become the Prime Minister.
