Calling himself ‘son of Lord Jagannath’, Modi declares: ‘BJD govt’s expiry date is June 4’

“The double engine government will come to Odisha for the first time,” he declared.

It was Modi’s first rally in Odisha since the election dates were announced. The state will go to the polls in four phases, starting May 13.

The PM, who referred to himself as the “son of Lord Jagannath”, the most revered god in Odisha, also promised that the BJP would nominate a chief minister who “understands and respects Odia culture”.

“Odisha has adequate water, mineral resources and a vast coastline. The almighty has blessed the state with everything. But what happened? The state is rich, but people are poor. Who has committed the sin? First the Congress and then the BJD. Even small BJD leaders are owners of big bungalows,” said the Prime Minister.

Underlining the Central government’s commitment to the state, Modi said the Centre had released over Rs 3.5 lakh crore to Odisha during his tenure.

“But friends, as you know, just sending funds doesn’t work.. We should have a good government here… Modi sends funds from Delhi and prepares a plan, but the BJD government here either doesn’t implement it, or pastes its own sticker on it, or loots the funds,” he said.

He said the BJP’s Odisha unit has released a progressive manifesto for the state with a focus on employment for youths, empowerment of women, social security for the elderly and appropriate MSP for farmers. It’s “Modi’s guarantee” that the BJP government will implement this in Odisha, he said.

Citing the example of Tripura, where he said the BJP ousted the Left and came to power despite fielding new and young leaders, Modi said the party could do the same in Odisha. He urged BJP workers to focus on winning individual booths and on motivating people to come out in large numbers to vote.