UP campaign ends: PM, BJP invoke national interest & vikas; Akhilesh talks jobs

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Modi, who addressed rallies in Varanasi and Mirzapur, as well as an “intellectuals’ meeting”, said people were voting keeping in mind the “national interest”, while promising jobs in government, measures for farmers and poor, and development works such as expressways. BJP leaders in Lucknow and Delhi also called it a vote on “nationalism”. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath claimed “casteism has been demolished”.

In the evening, senior BJP leaders Amit Shah and J P Nadda held a press conference in Delhi, where they said people had voted for the works of the Modi government. Shah said the way the Modi government had “intervened to get Indians out of conflict-hit Ukraine” would help the BJP, and that the party could see the “popularity of PM Modi at its peak”.

Addressing a meeting for Assembly segments in rural areas of Varanasi, Modi said, “Today, if somebody votes even in the panchayat elections, he considers national interest. Because he knows that if the nation is strong, issues of gaon aur biradari (village and community) will get resolved too.”

UP elections were “pro-incumbency”, he said, with people themselves fighting for continuation of the government.

At a rally in Khajuri village of Varanasi, he accused “dynasts” of making fun of ‘vocal for local’ and the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, and said his government had made Khadi and yoga “international brands”. He accused the Opposition of “doing politics” over the Ukraine crisis.

A BJP government would continue its crackdown on criminals, Modi said. “Aur jo mutthi bhar apraadhi mafia phir baahar nikalne ke liye sapne dekh rahe hain, mundi dikhana shuru kiya hai, kanoon unka hisab bhi chukta kare, yeh kaam bhi tej kiya jayega (And those handful of criminals, mafia who are again dreaming of getting out of jail, have started rising their heads, law will take due action against them and at a fast pace).”

Addressing 200-odd participants at a ‘Prabudh Varg Sammelan’ in Varanasi city, Modi said that if the BJP returns to power, UP will be at the forefront of economic development. He stressed the need for “a stable government in the state which can take bold decisions”. “Continuity chahiye, stability chahiye… UP has the potential to lead India’s economy.”

Akhilesh Yadav at the Kaal Bhairav temple, Varanasi. (PTI)

Among the rallies Akhilesh held, two were in the SP bastion of Azamgarh, and one each in Jaipur and Mirzapur districts. At a rally in Azamgarh’s Gopalpur constituency, the highlight was BJP MP Rita Bahuguna Joshi’s son Mayank Joshi joining the SP. Akhilesh launched a ‘Vijay Rath Yatra’ from the rally.

Welcoming Mayank into the SP and claiming it would further boost the party morale, Akhilesh said Adityanath was “struggling to sleep because he has sensed the BJP’s defeat”. “Those who were saying garmi nikaal denge (show others their place), have been left thande (spent).”

On jobs, the SP chief said: “I promise youth that when we form the government, we will ensure recruitment in the Army, police. The 11 lakh posts lying vacant will be filled.”

Akhilesh claimed that people in Azamgarh were competing with each other to elect SP candidates with the highest margins.

Taking a dig at PM Modi, who sported an orange cap on Friday during his campaign in Varanasi, Akhilesh said: “Those who used to talk about your topi, they also wore a topi, but changed the colour. You must be careful of people who change colours. BJP people are liars.”

Adityanath, who spoke with reporters in Lucknow, claimed the BJP and its allies would win 80% of the seats in the Assembly and that people had voted “on issues of nationalism, development, good governance and security”. “Casteism has been demolished. Those who indulged in dynasty politics have failed.”

Shah also addressed a rally in UP on the last day, at Malhani Assembly seat, where he promised that if it returns, the BJP government will put the remaining one or two gangsters out of jail behind bars. He also claimed that CM Adityanath had freed land worth Rs 2,000 crore from the grip of the land mafia and that houses for the poor had been built on it.

At the Delhi press meeting, as Nadda said the BJP would perform “better than expected” in Punjab, Shah said it doesn’t mean that the BJP “would not form government” in the state, apart from returning to power in the other four states where elections just got over.

Shah also said that BJP rule had “finished the three demons of dynasty politics caste politics and appeasement politics in UP”.

(With ENS, Delhi, PTI inputs)