Congress will see results of its attitude against armed forces: Uttarakhand CM Trivendra Singh Rawat

Excerpts:

Are the Lok Sabha polls a litmus test for you?

These polls are a test for me and my government since my government has completed two years. It is a test of whether we’ve been able to deliver upon our promises of development. I’m confident that the results will be in our favour.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had promised a “double engine government” if BJP was voted to power in Uttarakhand in the 2017 state Assembly polls. What has your government achieved under the “double engine government”?

With (senior Congress leader) Harish Rawat as the chief minister, corruption had become the hallmark of the former Uttarakhand government. We have freed the state from the sand mining mafia, liquor mafia, land mafia, which were quite active during the Harish Rawat government.

Work is ongoing on projects including the all-weather Char Dham roads project, the Rishikesh-Karnprayag rail project, and the Namami Gange project. We had held an investors’ summit, last year, where we had signed Memoranda of Understanding of Rs 40,000 crore for the hilly areas of Uttarakhand, of which Rs 13,500 crore are already on the ground. My government has introduced 10 new policies and amended five existing policies in sectors including tourism, adventure sports, solar power, and start-ups.

You said the Harish Rawat government was corrupt. But many senior leaders from his government are now ministers in your government in Uttarakhand.

Jab kaptaan theek ho to sab theek ho jata hai (If the leadership is right then everyone falls in line).

Your government has undertaken developmental activities that have hugely impacted the environment since a large number of trees have been cut, and slopes have been carved out when the state is prone to landslides.

We are keeping in mind the environmental norms while undertaking developmental projects. If we have cut trees (for the all-weather Char Dham roads project) then, as per existing norms, we’ll be planting trees at alternative locations. For all kinds of construction, including that of roads, we’re following the NGT (National Green Tribunal) orders too.

What new will the BJP bring to the state if it wins and forms the government at the Centre?

It is too early to comment on that. Plans will be chalked out once the results are out.

How much of a competition is Congress for you? Which of the five seats do you see as particularly challenging for the BJP?

I don’t see Congress as a competition at all. Congress is going to be badly defeated on all five (Lok Sabha) seats in Uttarakhand because they lack proper leadership.

Haven’t you taken the maximum risk in the Nainital seat? If your candidate, state BJP president Ajay Bhatt, loses to Congress’s Harish Rawat then will you review his post, considering that he also lost the 2017 state Assembly polls from Ranikhet seat?

Ajay Bhatt ji is not going to lose. I’m confident about it. So, there’s no point thinking about what will happen if he loses.

The BJP has been projecting the Congress as anti-national. How much is that going to matter in Uttarakhand?

Nationalism and national security are issues that impact Uttarakhand to a large extent since Uttarakhand has a high contribution in the Armed Forces. The Congress leaders should have been careful before questioning the actions of our Armed Forces. Also, Congress manifesto says the party will amend the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act if voted to power. It could mean entangling our jawans in legal tussles. So, Congress will see the results of its attitude against the Armed Forces in the upcoming polls.

Two sitting BJP MPs who are both former Uttarakhand chief ministers – Major General (retd.) BC Khanduri, and Bhagat Singh Koshiyari – were dropped from the list of BJP candidates this time. Won’t it affect the BJP votes?

They were not dropped by the party. They both decided not to contest this time. While both are our seniors, their absence is not going to have any negative impact on the results of the Lok Sabha polls. We are going to win all five seats.

BC Khanduri’s son Manish Khanduri is contesting from Pauri Garhwal seat as a Congress candidate. While BC Khanduri, who has won five Lok Sabha polls from Pauri Garhwal seat, did not campaign for his son, he didn’t campaign for the BJP either. Won’t it hamper BJP’s prospects in the Pauri Garhwal seat?

Khanduri ji is a very respected leader for us. But he hasn’t been keeping well. He hasn’t even visited his constituency (Pauri Garhwal) in the past two and a half years due to health reasons, so we can’t expect him to campaign for us. Manish is his son, so of course he has Khanduri ji’s blessings, but Khanduri ji’s support is only for the BJP.