After Akhilesh's jibe, PM says CM 'blinded by power'

A day after Akhilesh Yadav's 'kaam ki baat' jibe at him, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today hit back, saying the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister could not see the work done by the Centre as he is "blinded by absolute power".
Addressing an election rally here, he asked Akhilesh-led Samajwadi Party government to give its account of work done in the past five years.
Urging voters of Uttar Pradesh to give BJP a chance, Modi said if his party is voted to power, all anti-social elements would be behing bars within six months.
The Prime Minister, while speaking about initiatives of his government at the Centre, said, "He (Akhilesh) cannot see the work as he is blinded with absolute power."

His attack on Akhilesh came a day after the Chief Minister took a swipe at him in the context of his 'Mann ki Baat' radio programme, saying "I want to ask him as to when will he do 'kaam ki baat' (talk of something worthwhile)".
Modi found faults in various works undertaken by Akhilesh and attacked him over law and order situation, saying incidents of rape and murder were on the rise and gangs were operating from inside the prisons.

Contending that the cases of "abduction and riots have increased", Modi asked Akhilesh, "Is this your 'kaam (work) or karname (bad deeds)' which is speaking?".

In an appeal to the voters, the Prime Minister said, "Give us a chance. All those using 'katta, chaku and churi' (country-made pistol and knives) will be behind bars."
Contending that the governments of SP, Congress and BSP
all have "failed" on all paramaters, Modi said, "Do they have the right to sit for the examination (elections) again?"
Referring to the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the Prime Minister said the people of the state had then taught these parties a lesson and only the representatives of two families of Congress and SP succeeded in winning elections while BSP was nowhere.

In those elections, BJP had got 71 out of 80 seats in Uttar Pradesh while its ally Apna Dal got two. Out of the remaining seven, Mulayam Singh Yadav's family had won five while Congress President Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi bagged one each.
"Akhileshji, after 2014, you had the chance to improve but you were not ready to do something worthwhile for the state. In 2014, when your family was one, there was no dispute and your image was also good, people thought you are a youth and can do something good. But you wasted the opportunity and you are now playing game of alliance," Modi said.

"Socialist leaders like Ram Manohar Lohia and Jai Prakash Narain fought against Congress in their lifetime but you preferred to sit in its lap and insulted them just for the lust of grabbing chair again," he said.
Attacking the SP-Congress Common Minimum Programme (CMP), Modi said that realising their condition, it was released in haste by the two leaders (Akhilesh and Rahul Gandhi) when polling was underway.
"It was an attempt to save their honour. UP government should have given its account of work done in the past five years but it is not being done," he said.
Hitting out at Akhilesh for the much-publicised Lucknow Metro project launched by his government, Modi said, "I am ready to go to Lucknow. Myself and Akhileshji should go and take ticket of Metro and travel by it."

He said while the station has been constructed, no train is running. "It's making a fool of people," the Prime Minister said, adding "the inauguration was done in a haste and despite central funds invovled in it, no central minister were invited, even local MP was ignored."
He also picked holes in Akhilesh's other scheme of setting up Medanta Hospital in Lucknow and asked, "Is this your work, which speaks?"
Modi also sought to put the state government in the dock for including cane, which is a low risk crop, in PM's Crop Insurance Scheme stating that "it has put a load on farmers".

Keeping in mind that Lakhimpur Kheri region is the sugarcane bowl of the state, Modi raised the issue of non- payment of cane dues to farmers. "Within 14 days of formation of BJP government, we will clear the dues. I will personally ensure it. The first work our government will do is to waive loans of small farmers," the Prime Minister said.
He said while in BJP-ruled states like Haryana, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat and Maharastra, 50-60 per cent farmers are insured, the figure is a meagre 14 per cent in UP.
"In the 14 per cent, those selected are on basis of caste and religion," he lamented, alleging, "The poison of casteism also crept in implementing the scheme.