You are being asked to vote for NDA for nothing, says Chidambaram

Taking a dig at PM Modi's speeches in his Bihar election rallies over the last two days, P Chidambaram said the BJP skipped the major issues concerning the voters like unemployment, MSP, etc

Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speeches in his Bihar election rallies over the last two days -- where he invoked Gods and talked about Article 370 and Ram Mandir -- former Union minister P Chidambaram on Monday said the BJP skipped the major issues concerning the voters like unemployment, MSP for food grains, flood relief, women's safety, etc.

"What did they (the Bharatiya Janata Party or BJP) tell you about unemployment, jobs, new industries, MSP for food grains, crop insurance, flood relief, women's safety, etc. The answer is zilch -- nothing. You are being asked to vote for the NDA (National Democratic Alliance) on a message that contains nothing," Chidambaram said.

At Sunday's rally, PM Modi talked about a double-engine NDA government, led by the BJP at the Centre and the JD(U) in the state. "On the other side, there are double-double crown princes (in an apparent reference to Congress's Rahul Gandhi and RJD's Tejashwi Yadav)," said the PM.

The Congress and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) are part of the Mahagathbandhan (Grand Alliance), along with the CPI and CPI(M).

The PM also invoked Chhath (the upcoming festival of the sun god) and the river Ganga. At Bagaha, Modi raised the issues of the construction of Ram temple, and scrapping of Art 370, besides the Citizenship Amendment Act.

Chidambaram had previously said that the opposition parties must believe that the BJP can be defeated and the Bihar polls will hopefully prove the same.

The first phase of the Bihar polls concluded on October 28, while the remaining two phases of voting are scheduled on November 3 and 7. The counting of votes will take place on November 10.